The Lady Knight
by Fae'sFlower
Summary: Learning how to waltz is hard. Learning how to follow tradition is even harder. But the hardest lessons are the lessons that have to be learned in secret. And secrets aren't meant to be revealed, especially when it could change everything. Fiyeraba. Warning: major character death. Winner 1st place Best AU, Tied 2nd place Best General, 3rd place Best Fiyeraba in 2017 Greg Awards.
1. Prologue

**Okay, new story! I've been wanting to start posting this for a while. This story takes place in a medieval Oz. The combination of medieval lessons in college and watching a lot of documentaries, TV shows, and movies about that era inspired this story. Hope you all enjoy it!**

* * *

 ** _The Vinkus: April Year 1142_**

Queen Amalie Lavinia Tigulaar of the Vinkus watched with a smile as a light, spring breeze blew past her face and made her wavy, light brown hair dance as she looked out her window. She picked up the sound of horses and soon, her eyes confirmed what her ears told her and caught the image of two prancing horses in the distance. A light sigh escaped her lips, for her husband had returned home.

"Your Majesty."

She turned towards the familiar voice. "Melena," she said softly, approaching her lady's maid. "You should be resting."

"Yes, my queen, but I have come to inform you that the king has returned," the young woman said with a slight curtsy.

The Vinkun queen smiled. "Yes, I saw. As did your husband."

The lady's maid smiled, then gasped softly as her hand flew to her bulging abdomen. "Oh!"

The queen approached her young attendant and gently took her arm. "I will go greet my husband. You will go back to your chambers and lie down."

"Yes, my queen," Melena said, allowing the queen to help her back to her room.

After making sure Melena was in bed, the queen hurried down to the courtyard, just as her husband was riding in. She smiled and lifted her skirts as she descended the steps.

"My king," she smiled as her husband dismounted his horse and approached her.

"My beautiful queen," the king, Raal, smiled as he softly kissing his wife. "How I've missed you."

"And I you," the queen smiled, resting her head against her husband's chest. A moment later, she gently pulled away and looked at her husband's accompanier. "Lord Frexspar."

"Your Majesty," a young man, advisor to the king, bowed, handing his horse's reins to the stable boy. A stray strand of his shoulder-length black hair had escaped from his low ponytail and he brushed it out of his face.

"Your wife is resting in her chambers. She is expecting you."

The man nodded. "With your leave, Your Majesties."

The king nodded and watched as the advisor hurried into the castle. "And how is the fair maiden?" the king asked, walking with his wife back into the castle.

"Very well. She is due any day now."

The king nodded. "And how are you?"

"Well enough."

Frexspar hurried up the castle stairs to his wife's private room. He knocked on the door and heard a soft "Enter" before he pushed the door open.

Melena was sitting by the window, humming softly to herself as she tangled her fingers in her long, wavy auburn locks. She turned and smiled at the sight of her husband. "Frexspar!"

The young man smiled and, closing the door behind him, approached and gently embraced his wife. "Oh, Melena. How I've missed you," he said, softly running his fingers through his wife's long, wavy, dark brown hair.

"I've missed you, too," the young woman said, sighing peacefully.

"The queen said you were resting."

"I was, but…" Melena trailed off, glancing down at her stomach.

Frexspar smiled as he knelt down, leveling his face to his wife's stomach, and placed a gentle kiss against her pregnancy bump. The baby responded with a soft kick and he laughed softly. "I see you have been keeping Mother company."

Another kick.

"Frexspar, I beg you, please stop egging him on," Melena said with a soft chuckle.

"Him?" Frexspar questioned as he rose to his full height.

Melena nodded as she placed a hand against her abdomen. "Yes. Him. I'm positive."

Frexspar laughed. "Does he have a name?"

Melena smiled. "I do not know yet."

A knock at the door interrupted the two. "Pardon me, my lord, but your presence is requested in the throne room," a male voice said from the other side.

"I must go," Frexspar said, softly kissing his wife.

Melena nodded and watched her husband go, closing the door behind him. Sighing, she slowly lowered herself onto the bed. "Enter," she called when someone knocked on her door a few moments later.

The door opened and a maid appeared. "My Lady Melena," she said with a curtsy. "Her Majesty has requested that you receive these extra pillows and blankets."

Melena smiled. She really didn't like all the fuss around her, but knew she couldn't refuse the queen's generous offer. "Thank you. You can put them on the –" She stopped short, her hand flying to her abdomen.

"My lady?" the maid asked, concerned. "Are you alright?"

"I…" Melena closed her eyes, feeling a warm liquid sliding down her legs. She knew exactly what was going on. "I'm fine."

"My lady, are you…?"

Melena nodded, rubbing her stomach. "Yes. But please, there's no need to –" She was cut off by a sharp pain and slid off the bed.

"My lady!" the maid gasped, running to Melena's side.

Melena opened her mouth to protest, but all that came out was a groan. She tried to push herself up, but to no avail. The maid helped her to her feet and helped her sit down on her bed.

"I shall go fetch Lord Frexspar," the maid said with a quick curtsy as she hurried out of the room.

The maid hurried down the steps and through the long corridors to the throne room. She paused for a moment to catch her breath before knocking on the doors.

"Enter!" she heard the king call.

The maid opened the door and slipped inside, approaching the monarchs and Frexspar before curtsying. "Pardon me, Your Majesties, Lord Frexspar."

"Yes?" the king asked, wondering the reason for the interruption.

"Lady Melena has gone into labor," the maid reported.

The queen gasped softly. Frex's eyes widened slightly. The king looked shocked.

"Is she alright?" the queen asked.

"She appears to be in pain, Your Majesty," the maid answered. "Something could be wrong."

"Go attend to your wife, Lord Frexspar," the king said, nodding his head to leave.

"I will accompany you," the queen said, leaving no room for argument.

Frexspar nodded and bowed to the king before hurrying out of the throne room, the queen closely behind him. They soon reached Melena's room and Frexspar practically threw the door open. He was greeted with the sight of Melena on her knees on the floor, sweat covering her forehead as she panted and groaned, her hand pressed tightly against her abdomen.

"Melena!" Frexspar gasped, hurrying to his wife's side.

"Frexspar," Melena groaned, then let out a cry of pain. "Something… something's wrong."

"Help her onto the bed," the queen instructed.

Frexspar helped his wife up and into the bed. It was then that he noticed the blood on her dress. "Sweet Oz…"

The queen instructed a passing servant to quickly summon the midwife. She turned back to her lady's maid, a look of worry on her face. She had a feeling what was going on, but didn't want to voice it, for fear that she would scare the young woman.

"Frexspar," Melena whispered, her voice barely audible.

"I'm right here, my sweet Melena," Frexspar whispered, kissing her forehead.

"The… the baby…"

"Will be fine," the royal advisor said in an attempt to calm his wife down.

Soon, the midwife appeared and immediately went to work examining Melena. Once she finished, she announced that the baby was breached.

"What?" Melena asked, trying to shift her position, but to no avail.

"The baby is not prepared for birth. If we cannot get it to turn within the next few contractions, the result… won't be ideal," the midwife said gently.

"What can be done?"

"All we can do is hope and wait. My deepest apologies, Lady Melena," the midwife said with a slight curtsy before leaving to report to Frexspar and the monarchs.

The queen had gone when the midwife started her examination, leaving Melena alone to her thoughts. She looked down at her rounded stomach and sighed. With great effort, she shifted to her left side, her back facing the door and sighed, too tired to stay awake, but in too much pain to sleep.

"Melena."

Melena recognized the voice and pushed herself up with great effort. "My queen."

"Stay down. Please," the queen said, approaching Melena and gently pushing her back down.

Melena moaned, but allowed the queen to help her.

"Would you like some water?"

"No, thank you, my queen."

"Are you in pain?"

"Not as of right now, my queen."

The two women fell into silence before Melena had a very painful contraction. She tried to avoid crying out in front of the monarch, but the pain was too much. The kind queen was very understanding and gracious to her lady's maid. She took a cloth and dipped it in a bowl of cold water that was left on the nightstand. She gently began to wipe Melena's forehead with it, causing the pregnant woman to sigh in comfort.

"Is this better?" the queen asked, smiling softly.

Melena smiled softly and nodded, rest coming to her a bit more easily.

The lady's maid was in labor for seven long hours. The baby had fortunately turned into the correct position, resulting in a slightly easier birth for Melena. Frexspar stayed awake all night, watching his wife as she slept in between her contractions. The midwife was called back and soon, it was time for Melena to push.

Frex waited outside the chamber, wanting to be inside to comfort his wife, but knew it wasn't his place to witness his wife giving birth. He paced outside, only able to listen to his wife's screams and the midwife's orders to push. Finally, he couldn't listen to her painful screams any longer and went to his office.

"The baby's coming!" he heard her say. "I see a nose… and a curl… one more push, Lady Melena!"

Melena groaned and with one final push, gave birth.

"Congratulations, Lady Melena! You are now the mother of a happy, perfect, lovely, little –" the midwife stopped short and gasped.

"What?" Melena asked breathlessly. "What is it? What's wrong?"

The midwife cut the umbilical cord and went to work cleaning the child. Maybe it was just a trick of the light. It was very dark outside, with the moon being the sole provider of light. There was no way in Oz that the baby…

"What is it?" Melena repeated, more hysterically this time.

"It's a girl," the midwife said as she wrapped the crying baby in a blanket. "But…"

"What's wrong?" Melena asked, then saw the baby. "No…"

The midwife tried to hand the baby to Melena, but the woman turned away. "Lady Melena…"

"Take it away," she whispered harshly.

"Shall I go fetch Lord Frexspar?"

Melena didn't answer.

The midwife gently laid the swaddled baby on the desk and went to search for the king's advisor. She found him in his office, reading by a candle. "Lord Frexspar?"

Frexspar turned. "How is Melena?"

"You have a daughter."

Frexspar smiled and let out a relieved laugh. "A daughter?"

The midwife nodded. "But my lord, I believe there is something you should see."

Frexspar's smile immediately vanished. "What is it?"

The midwife motioned for him to follow her and she led him back to the chamber. She immediately went into the room and picked up the baby. "The baby…"

Frexspar stepped closer and gasped. The baby had small ringlets of black hair, a small nose, and soft lips. But unfortunately, Frexspar didn't notice any of that. All he noticed was that the baby had emerald green skin.

"What does this mean?" he demanded.

"Here is your daughter," the midwife said, trying to hand the bundle to him.

Frexspar immediately stepped back. "Get that thing away from me!"

"But, my lord…"

"Take that disgusting thing away!"

"What is going on in here?"

Frexspar turned and immediately bowed, seeing the king and queen. "Your Majesties."

The queen immediately went over to Melena and gently took her hand. "Are you alright? Where is the baby?"

"Here, Your Majesty," the midwife said softly, still holding the bundle.

"Don't look at it, my queen," Frexspar warned.

The queen slowly stood and approached the midwife. One look at the child and she gasped.

"It's cursed," Frexspar whispered in despair.

The king turned away in disgust. He didn't say anything, knowing how fragile Melena was at the moment, but everyone in the room was thinking the same thing.

Everyone but one person.

The queen looked at the baby in the midwife's arms. She was peacefully asleep, though she knew she would wake soon, wanting to be fed. "Give her to me," the queen said to the midwife.

"Amalie, do not touch it!" the king exclaimed, turning around to face his wife.

"Raal," the queen whispered. "She is just a baby."

"It's a monster!"

Melena sobbed quietly and the queen frowned at her husband.

"It's a sin," Frex said venomously, glaring at the nameless infant. "It's unnatural! It's hideous!"

"Give her to me," the queen repeated, holding out her arms for the baby.

The midwife hesitated, but gently handed the bundle over to the queen. Amalie looked down at the sleeping infant, who soon began to fuss, wanting to be fed.

"Melena," the queen whispered, knowing she wouldn't be able to comfort the child. "Your daughter is hungry."

"I don't want it," Melena whispered.

"Melena –"

"Please… just get rid of it."

"Your child –"

"That… that _thing_ is not my child!"

The infant's fussing soon turned into wailing. The queen tried her best to comfort her, but knew she wouldn't be able to. The only thing that would calm the infant was breast milk.

"What should we do about this?" Frexspar asked, running his hand through his hair.

"I do not believe there is much we can do about this," the king said. "The Unnamed God's Good Book clearly states that all life is precious, especially the life of children."

"Is there anything physically wrong with the child?" the queen asked, turning to the midwife.

"No, Your Majesty. The child, though oddly colored, is perfectly healthy," the midwife replied with a slight curtsy.

"You have until tomorrow to decide what you will do with the child," the king said to Melena and Frexspar.

"What will happen after that?" the queen asked, looking at her husband.

"We will do what we must. If the nunnery will take her, she will go there. If not, she will become a ward of the orphanage."

Melena was silent, and Frex considered the idea before nodding.

"Then so be it," the king nodded.

The adults all exchanged looks. The newborn began to fuss again, still not getting the food her little body was craving. Melena looked at the bundle before slowly reaching out her arms. The queen smiled and gently handed over the bundle. As soon as Melena held her newborn, her feelings of hate seemed to slowly start to vanish. She gently ran her fingers over her soft cheek and a single tear slid down her cheek. The king and queen left the room. Frex glanced over at his wife once more before following the king and queen out.

After the midwife gave Melena a quick breastfeeding lesson, the baby was nursing peacefully. As she finished, the young woman burped her daughter and looked down at her as she fell back asleep. Other than her skin oddity, she seemed to be a normal newborn. True, she was different, but she supposed raising her wouldn't too much of a burden.

It was then that she realized she hadn't named her child yet. "Elphaba," she whispered. The baby briefly opened her eyes and Melena could have sworn the newborn smiled at her, even though she knew it was impossible. "Yes, I believe Elphaba is a very suitable name for you."


	2. Chapter 1

**Thank you all so much for your reviews! They mean the world to me.**

 **RavenCurls: I know. It took me a while to get used to "Lord Frexspar", too.**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Here is your birthday, update, Your Majesty! Happy birthday!**

 **Satilliteheart: I'm glad you got excited! Thank you!**

* * *

 ** _The Vinkus: May Year 1147_**

"My queen looks marvelous in her new gown," Melena smiled as she helped the queen into her dress.

The queen smiled. "Thank you, Melena."

"How does my queen wish her hair to be styled?"

"You may leave it down," the queen said as Melena grabbed the hairbrush and began to gently run it through the queen's hair.

Melena smiled as she brushed the queen's hair and allowed it to flow down her back. She then took the crown and gently placed it on her head. "Does my queen require anything else?"

"No, Melena. That will be all. You have my blessing to go."

The lady's maid curtsied and left the queen's chamber. She walked down the long corridors of the stone castle, humming softly to herself. She paused briefly, hearing a countermelody. She looked out the window and smiled, seeing her two children playing together in the gardens.

Elphaba, now five, was humming as she skipped with her sister throughout the garden. Her younger sister, Nessarose, now three, was giggling happily as she played with her sister. She giggled a bit louder when Elphaba gently kissed her cheek and placed a flower in her brown hair.

Melena chuckled softly to herself and she continued her walk down the corridor. She soon reached the door leading to the gardens and opened the door, leaning against the doorframe as she watched her children.

"Elphaba! Nessarose! It is time to come in now!" she called to her children.

The two girls looked up and hurried over to their mother. Melena smiled as she knelt down and embraced her two children. Rising to her feet, she led her children back inside, closing the door behind her.

"Lady Melena!" a voice from behind called.

Melena turned, seeing a maid hurriedly approaching her. "Yes?"

"The Queen requests your presence in her private chamber."

Melena nodded and turned to Elphaba. "Take your sister back to the nursery, Elphaba."

"Yes, Mama," the little green girl nodded, taking her sister's hand and leading her away.

Melena watched her children go before hurrying away to serve the queen.

Elphaba walked with her sister through the long corridors of the castle. Nessa was scared to walk through the castle by herself, but had no problem walking with her older sister, whom she admired to the ends of Oz and back.

The green girl led her sister to their private apartments in the castle. She was just about to turn the corner when a small figure in a scary mask jump out.

Both girls screamed and Nessa bursts into tears as she ran down the hall, clearly terrified. Elphaba looked back at the person, who had taken off his mask and was leaning against the wall, laughing.

The young Prince Fiyero Tigulaar clutched his stomach as he laughed his heart out. Elphaba frowned. She didn't appreciate the prince scaring her younger sister like that.

"That wasn't very nice, Prince Fiyero," Elphaba frowned.

"The look on her face was priceless!" the six-year-old prince said.

Elphaba bit back a sigh and turned to find her sister, but the prince wasn't finished with her yet.

"Where do you think you're going, frog girl?"

Elphaba turned. "I must –"

"Did I give you permission to leave?"

"You scared my sister away, so I must find her."

"Did I give you permission to leave?" the prince repeated, his eyes narrowing.

"No," Elphaba said softly.

"No what?"

"No, Your Highness."

"And do you know what happens to disobedient little frogs?" he asked, circling the green girl like a predator.

"No, Your Highness," Elphaba said, looking down at the ground.

The prince grabbed Elphaba's chin and forced her to look at him. "They have to kiss my foot."

Elphaba blinked. Kissing feet was of asking forgiveness for a serious offense. Only the lowliest of people did it. She knew she was beneath the prince, but she knew there were people more lowly than her.

"Well?" Fiyero asked with a slight smirk.

Elphaba bit her lip. She knew she couldn't disobey the prince, for fear of what her parents, along with the king and queen, would do to her. She knelt down and leaned forward to kiss the prince's foot. But as she did so, she wasn't prepared for Fiyero's foot to lift from the ground and make direct contact with her nose. Elphaba fell back with a gasp of pain, the sound of the prince's laughter filling her ears. She heard him hurry away and rose to her feet, still clutching her nose.

"Elphaba!"

The green girl turned and saw her father approaching her with Nessarose in his arms. "Elphaba, what happened? Aren't you and Nessarose supposed to be in the nursery?"

Elphaba knew she couldn't tell her father what happened. And even if she did, she knew nothing could be done about it. She was not in a position to tattle on the prince. "Yes, Papa. I'm sorry. I… got distracted."

Frex sighed and set Nessarose down. "We will discuss this later. Go to the nursery with your sister. Quickly, now."

"Yes, Papa," Elphaba said, taking her sister's hand again and hurrying away.

"Are you alright, Faba?" Nessa asked, seeing her sister rub her nose.

"Yes, Nessie. I'm fine."

"Why are you rubbing your nose?"

"I… fell."

"When?"

"A few moments ago."

"Oh. Is that why you were on the floor?"

"Yes." Elphaba really didn't want to talk about it anymore and they soon reached their private nursery.

Nessarose giggled as she hurried to her toy chest and pulled out her favorite toy, her stuffed lamb. "Faba! Faba! Let's play tea party!"

Elphaba smiled softly and played with her sister, the incident with the prince soon forgotten. They played until it was time for dinner. Melena and Frex returned and the family ate together in their private apartment. Once they finished eating, they excused Nessa back to the nursery, but Frexspar asked Elphaba to stay behind.

"Elphaba, what happened earlier?" Frexspar asked. "You were supposed to go straight to the nursery, were you not?"

"I… I saw the prince, Papa," Elphaba explained.

"And?"

"He… scared Nessa and made me stay behind."

Frexspar and Melena exchanged a look. Frexspar sighed and rose to his feet. "Go back to the nursery, Elphaba."

The green girl realized that she wasn't expected to explain more and wasn't going to be punished, nodded and hurried away from the table. She found her sister looking at a picture book.

"Faba, will you read to me?"

Elphaba smiled and nodded and both girls sat on the floor together. Even though Elphaba's official schooling wouldn't start until she was seven, she had an early start on reading and writing. Even though she was only five, she progressed in her reading very quickly and could read very well for her age. She was a very bright child, eager to learn as much as she could about everything. Her curiosity would sometimes annoy her parents, but at the end of the day, all they could do was chuckle at all of her inquisitive questions.

That was how the maid found the two sisters when she arrived to prepare them for bed. Elphaba allowed the maid to help her, while Nessa did her usually nightly-protests. After two glasses of milk, a trip to the privy, and two stories, the two young girls were fast asleep.

* * *

The next day, Elphaba was sitting under a tree, reading as she munched on an apple. She hummed to herself as she turned the page, her eyes allowing her brain to absorb every word. She heard footsteps approaching her, but didn't want to look up from her story. Before she knew it, her book was snatched from her hands and she looked up.

"I didn't know vegetables could read," the prince said with a smirk, carelessly flipping through the book.

Elphaba stood up and curtsied reluctantly. "I am not a vegetable, Your Highness, and I can read."

The prince gave her a look. "Well then, froggy, if you're so smart, why don't you tell me what this book is about?"

"It's about an old king named King Arthur and his knights of the round table and –"

"Boring!" Fiyero huffed with a yawn. "And what kind of name is Arthur, anyway? It sounds weird."

"If it's so boring and weird, Your Highness, then may I please have it back?" Elphaba asked, reaching for the book.

The prince pulled away and held it out of her reach. "And why would I give this to you?"

"Because it is mine."

The prince laughed. "Frogs don't own books."

"But –"

"I am the _prince_ ," Fiyero said, glaring at Elphaba. "Everything belongs to me. Therefore, this book isn't yours!"

"The book is mine, Your Highness. My father bought it and gave it to me."

"Well, your father works for my father, so _therefore_ , the book is _still_ mine!"

Elphaba's fists were slowly clenching by her sides. She was getting very tired of the prince.

"However, vegetable, I shall let you borrow my book for a period of time."

"I am not a vegetable," Elphaba said softly.

"If I say you are a vegetable, then you are a vegetable! Now, do you wish to borrow my book or not?"

"Yes, Your Highness, I wish to borrow the book."

" _My_ book," the prince corrected.

" _Your_ book," Elphaba said submissively, trying to suppress her sarcasm.

"Now, repeat after me. I am a lowly pond frog."

Elphaba frowned. "Prince Fiyero –"

"Do as I say!"

"I am a lowly pond frog," Elphaba practically growled through her teeth.

"And a dirty, little monster."

Elphaba could practically see her dignity flying away. "And a dirty little monster."

"Who has no business reading books that belong to the prince."

"Who has no business reading books that belong to the prince."

Fiyero smirked in satisfaction.

"May I please have the book now?"

"Very well," Fiyero said, holding the book out to her.

Elphaba reached for it, but just as she was about to take it, the prince pulled it away and started running. Groaning, Elphaba chased after him.

Unbeknownst to them, the queen watched with a soft smile as the children ran.

"My queen."

Amalie turned and saw Melena. Smiling, she beckoned her to come and look out the window. "Come look. The children are playing tag."

Melena looked out the window, smiling as the sounds of the prince's laughter reached her ears. She knew the prince didn't have many friends, so she was very glad to see the children playing together. Smiling, both women walked away from the window, completely oblivious to what was really happening in the gardens.

"Prince Fiyero, you said you would give me the book!" Elphaba exclaimed as she chased after the prince.

"If you want it so bad, you can have it!" Fiyero exclaimed as he ran towards the pond.

 _No!_ Elphaba thought, trying to pick up her pace.

Fiyero reached the pond and turned around in satisfaction as he prepared to throw the book.

"No!" Elphaba shouted as the book left the prince's hands. She could only watch as the book landed in the pond with a splash. She stopped at the edge of the pond, trying to catch her breath.

"I thought frogs were great swimmers. Why don't you just jump in and get the book?" the prince sneered.

Elphaba felt her face grow hot and began fighting tears. The prince had ruined her precious new book. And she didn't even get to finish it.

"You better jump in and start swimming if you want to save the book, frog girl," the prince said with a laugh as he ran away.

Elphaba looked at the water. She couldn't swim, and the book was slowly starting to float away towards the center of the pond. Looking around, she saw a large branch on the ground and figured that she could use it before the book got too far out. She grabbed the branch and used it to pull the book back to her. Once it was close enough, she grabbed it. The book was completely soaked, therefore completely destroyed. Sighing, Elphaba clutched the book to her chest as she walked back into the castle, her head reeling with horrible thoughts about the prince, as well as the hopes of not running into her father.

As luck would have it, her father was coming out of a meeting in the throne room. She knew she wouldn't be able to sneak past him, and it would be pointless to try and hide the book behind her back, and there was nothing else she could do about the matter.

"Elphaba!" Frexspar called.

Elphaba hurriedly approached her father. "Yes, Papa?"

"What happened to your book?"

Elphaba looked down and realized that the book was dripping wet. "I… it fell in the pond. I'm sorry."

Frexspar sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What is the purpose of getting you new things if you cannot take proper care of them?"

"I'm sorry, Papa. It won't happen again."

"I know it won't," Frex said as he held out his hand for the book.

Elphaba gave it to him, reverting her gaze to the floor.

"Go back to the nursery and stay there until dinner. You will not have any dessert tonight. Maybe that will teach you to be more careful with your belongings."

Elphaba didn't look up. "Yes, Papa," she said as she hurried away. As soon as she reached the nursery, she closed the door behind her and leaned against it with a sigh. Spotting her toy chest, she hurried over to it and pulled out her stuffed bunny. She climbed onto her bed and hugged her toy to her chest. She made a mental note to herself that she was never going to read outside ever again… or take any of her special belongings out of the nursery.


	3. Chapter 2

**Satilliteheart: Oh, she knows. She just can't act on it. And as for that apology… that might take a while.**

 **AirHawk19: Oh, of** ** _course_** **it will get worse!**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Oh, I have something planned for Fiyero much worse than falling into the pond.**

 **PocketSevens: Don't worry. Fiyero will get into trouble without any help from Elphaba.**

* * *

Prince Fiyero hummed to himself as he strolled down the corridors of the castle. He stopped when he noticed Nessarose sitting in the parlor, softly brushing her doll's hair. Smirking to himself, he got an idea and walked in.

Nessa looked up and stood when she saw the prince. "Your Highness," she said with a curtsy.

"Hello, Miss Nessarose," the prince said sweetly, causing the younger girl to blush. "I need your help with something."

"Yes, Your Highness?"

"I lost something and I was wondering if you will help me look for it."

Nessarose nodded and followed the prince out. They walked down the corridor and down a flight of stairs before coming to an old door.

"What room is that?" Nessarose asked, having never been down there before.

"It's my secret playroom," Fiyero whispered.

"Ooh!"

"It's a secret that only I –and now you– know about."

"I like secrets."

"I know you do, which is why you have to promise me that you won't tell anyone about this."

"Okay," Nessa nodded. "What did you leave down there?"

"I left one of my toy soldiers."

"So… why don't you just go down and get it?"

Fiyero opened the door. It was pitch black inside, not a single light was shining. "It's dark right now, and I wanted someone to go down with me."

"Oh," Nessa whispered, not liking the dark.

"But… if we go down together, it won't be so bad," Fiyero said.

Nessarose blinked her large, chocolate eyes. She supposed that if she was going with Prince Fiyero, things would be fine. "Okay."

"Great! You go first."

"Me?"

Fiyero nodded. "I'll be right behind you."

"I… I think you should go first."

"Okay. I'll go first. I was just thinking that a big, brave girl like you wouldn't be afraid of the dark and –"

"Wait!" Nessa interrupted, just like the prince had planned. "I'll… I can go first."

Fiyero smiled and walked behind Nessarose down the dark staircase. Once they reached the bottom, Nessa asked where the toy was.

"I think it's somewhere on the other side of the room," Fiyero said.

He saw Nessarose's dim-lit face nod and slowly walk to the other side. Smirking, the prince quickly and quietly made his way back up the staircase. "Prince Fiyero?" was the last thing he heard before he shut the giant door, trapping the three-year-old girl inside… the dungeon.

Elphaba was walking back from the privy when she didn't hear her sister's voice in the parlor where she had left her. Sighing, she hurried inside, hoping her sister hadn't left. Not seeing her sister, she began to panic. She was supposed to be watching her and making sure she stayed out of trouble.

"Nessarose?" she called. "Nessie, where are you?"

Not hearing a response, Elphaba searched the parlor for her sister. Finding the room Nessarose-less, she expanded her search to the rest of that floor of the castle. Still coming up empty, she went up to check the nursery. Still not finding Nessa, she grunted in frustration. Where was she?

She ran back down to the parlor. As she turned the corner, she bumped into the last person she wanted to see.

"Watch where you're going, frog!" the prince frowned.

Elphaba dipped into a curtsy. "I'm sorry, Your Highness."

"Where are you hopping to in such a hurry, anyway?"

"I…" Elphaba stopped. She couldn't tell the prince she was looking for her sister. That would cause too much of an uproar… especially for her. "I was…"

"Well?" Fiyero asked.

"I was… in a hurry to get a snack, Your Highness," Elphaba said, curtsying and maneuvering around the prince.

"You were going to get a snack without your sister?" Fiyero called without turning around to face the green girl.

Elphaba stopped in her tracks and whirled around. "You know where my sister is?"

"I might, or I might not. And if I did, why would I tell you? Isn't it your responsibility to watch over her?"

"You know where my sister is."

"Like I said before, broccoli girl, I might or I might not. Are you deaf as well as horribly discolored?"

"Tell me where my sister is."

Fiyero frowned. "A frog doesn't tell a prince what to do."

"Your Highness," Elphaba said, her voice dripping with false sweetest, "would you please tell me where my sister is?"

"Well, it appears it is possibly to teach an old frog manners. Very well. We were playing a game of hide-and-seek and –"

"You were near my sister?" Elphaba whispered, a million worst-case scenarios running through her mind.

"You will _not_ interrupt me! I am allowed to be near whoever I please. Anyway, your sister is hiding."

"Hiding where?"

"That's for me to know and for you to figure out."

"Prince Fiyero!"

"I would stop wasting time here, if I were you. After all, we wouldn't want the rats to get her, now would we?"

Elphaba watched as the prince strolled away. Rats? What did he mean by…

 _No!_

Elphaba hurried down the corridor and down the stairs to the dungeon door. No. Her sweet little sister couldn't be down there all alone. Nessarose did nothing to deserve this. How dare that prince! He's just doing this to make her look bad. In fact, everything he does is to make her look bad. She didn't even want to think about the punishment she would get for this.

"Nessie?" she whispered down the dark staircase as she opened the door.

Silence answered her.

Gulping, Elphaba slowly made her way down the staircase, feeling her way as best she could. When she reached the bottom, she squinted through the darkness for her sister. "Nessie?"

"Faba?"

Nessarose's voice echoed through the dungeon, and Elphaba couldn't place her. "Nessie, where are you?"

"Over here!"

"Here where?"

"In the corner."

Elphaba squinted and thought she saw her sister's small, huddled figure in the far-right corner. She hurried towards it, and was relieved that it was her sister. "Oh, Nessie," Elphaba exclaimed, wrapping her arms around her sister.

"Faba!" Nessarose cried, leaning against her sister's shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Nessie! Are you alright? What happened?"

"Faba, I wanna get out of here now."

"Okay, Nessie. We'll leave," Elphaba said as she stood, helping her sister up as well. She took her hand and led her back up the stairs, but wasn't prepared for the sight that greeted her when they emerged. Her parents, along with the king, queen, and Fiyero were standing there, waiting for them.

"Elphaba! Nessarose! There you are!" Melena exclaimed in relief. "We were so wor- Elphaba, what happened to Nessarose?"

Elphaba looked over at her sister and gasped softly. Her sister's face and hands were covered in bloody scratches. She couldn't have seen it in the dark. What had happened down there?

Melena rushed to her daughter and scooped her into her arms. She turned back to the royals. "Your Majesties, may I –"

"Of course," the queen nodded.

Melena nodded and dipped into a quick curtsy, hurrying away with Nessarose.

"Come, Fiyero," the queen said, gently placing her hand on her son's shoulder.

Fiyero followed his mother, but not before throwing a quick smirk at Elphaba. The king followed his wife and son, leaving Frexspar alone with Elphaba.

The green girl gulped and hung her head, already knowing what was in store for her. She felt her father approaching her and flinched slightly when he grabbed her arm. He pulled her into the nursery and closed the door behind him, grabbing the wooden paddle from behind the door. He threw Elphaba onto the bad and wacked her on her bottom with the paddle. Elphaba bit her lip to avoid crying out, knowing it would only make it worse. After twenty whacks, Frexspar stopped.

"You are not to leave the nursery for the rest of the night. Until you prove that you can be trusted again, you are not to leave the apartment unchaperoned. Do I make myself perfectly clear?" he asked.

Elphaba nodded wordlessly and heard her father leave, closing the door behind him. Sniffling, she wiped the tears from her eyes and crawled closer to her pillow. Grabbing her stuffed bunny, she hugged it against to her chest. Why must she continue to suffer at the hands of the prince like this? What could she have possibly done to make him hate her so much? What could he possibly gain from all of this?

* * *

 **April Year 1148**

Ever since the prince's seventh birthday the previous month, he had been spending most of the day with his private tutors, which meant that Elphaba was a bit freer. She could read outside again without having to worry about Prince Fiyero throwing her books into the pond. Her father had relieved her from her punishment, being unable to stay mad at his eldest daughter for very long.

With her own birthday coming up, the green girl was simply ecstatic. The other castle workers were also very excited about the green girl's sixth birthday. They didn't make a big party out of it like the prince's, but rather, it was a simple party with just Melena, Frexspar, Nessarose, and the birthday girl herself in the sitting room of their apartment.

"Happy birthday, Elphaba!" Melena and Frexspar smiled as they kissed their daughter's cheeks.

"Open my present first, Faba!" Nessarose smiled, handing Elphaba a box that the little girl had _clearly_ wrapped herself.

Elphaba smiled as she carefully unwrapped the (poorly) wrapped present. She smiled, pulling out a colorful board game.

"We can play it together," Nessarose smiled. "Do you like it?"

"I love it. Thank you, Nessie," Elphaba smiled as she hugged her sister.

The little girl giggled.

After the rest of her presents were opened, which consisted of new dresses and books (which she promptly promised her father she wouldn't ruin), it was time for the girls' nap. Nessa did her usual protests, but allowed her father to carry her to her bed. Once both girls were tucked in and asleep, the two adults slipped out to attend to their castle duties.

An hour later, Elphaba woke up from her nap hungry. She looked over at her sister, who was still asleep, and slipped out of bed. Tiptoeing out the door and closing it behind her, she quietly made her way down to the kitchen, using the servants' door. Smiling, she spotted a basket of strawberries, her favorite fruit. Giggling, she hurried over to the basket and, grabbing it from the table, crawled underneath it and began to snack.

When the cook came back, she was shocked to find the basket missing, but calmed down when she heard a giggle from underneath the table. Peering down, she chuckled softly, seeing Elphaba with strawberries all over her face.

"Oh, Miss Elphaba," the cook said, chuckling as she gently pulled Elphaba from under the table and helped her to her feet. Shaking her head, she used a cloth to clean the little girl's face. "Aren't you supposed to be somewhere right now?"

Elphaba shrugged. "May I have more strawberries, please?"

The cook shook her head. "If you eat all the strawberries now, there won't be any left for your birthday surprise after dinner."

Elphaba immediately brightened up. "What surprise?"

"If I tell you, it wouldn't be a surprise anymore, would it?"

"No, I suppose it wouldn't," the green child said after thinking it over.

"No, it wouldn't," the cook said before ushering Elphaba out. "Now, run along now. I have work to do."

Nodding with a giggle, the birthday green girl skipped away. The cook watched her go with a smile before returning to her work. She was rolling dough when she heard footsteps and turned to see the young prince.

"Your Highness," she said with a curtsy, subtly trying to hide the basket, knowing the prince would try to take it for himself.

Fiyero frowned at her.

"May I help you with something?"

"I am hungry," Fiyero announced like it was the most important news in the country.

"I shall prepare a snack for you."

"What's that?" Fiyero asked, eyeing the basket.

"Um… nothing," the cook said, trying (and failing) to cover it up.

"Are those strawberries?"

She stepped in front of the basket to block it from the prince's view. "No. Well… maybe… sort of… yes, they are."

"Give them to me!" Fiyero commanded.

"But Prince Fiyero, these are for Miss Elphaba's –"

"Are you denying me something that I requested because of the pond frog?" the prince asked, clearly getting angry.

"It is her birthday, Your Highness, and she –"

"I don't care what day it is! I commanded you to give me the basket!"

"But –"

"Now! Before I decided to tell my father of your incompetence!"

The cook turned away in fear, but reluctantly gave the prince the basket. With a satisfied smirk, the prince stuck out his tongue at her and ran away, laughing. Scowling, the cook fisted her hands against her hips and glared at the prince behind his back.

Sighing, she turned back to her dough, wondering how she was going to tell Elphaba that there wouldn't be a strawberry surprise for her birthday.

After dinner, the cook came and gently told Elphaba that she wouldn't have strawberry tarts for her birthday. Though upset, Elphaba accepted the banana tarts gratefully and gave the cook a smile.

"Thank you," she said, finishing a tart and reaching for another, while Nessa worked on her third tart.

"You're welcome, Miss Elphaba… and Miss Nessarose," she said with a chuckle as Nessa reached for a fourth tart, and was promptly stopped by her mother.

"Thank you," Nessa smiled at the cook, hoping that would get her another tart.

The cook nodded and left the family's private apartment, the last thing she heard was Melena saying, "Alright, one more and that's it for the night." and Nessarose's happy squeal.

"Seyla!"

The cook turned around and saw a maid hurrying over to her. "Yes, Maylah?"

"Prince Fiyero has requested a snack."

"But… he just ate."

"It's what the prince requested. And he says that he wants it immediately."

"Well, I'd better just drop everything and do what His Highness wants, mustn't I?" the cook said, clearly mocking the prince.

The maid gave her a sympathetic look as she hurried away, leaving the cook alone. Sighing, she hurried back to the kitchens to prepare a last minute snack for the prince.

* * *

 **Yes, yes, I know. Fiyero will get better…. maybe… eventually.**


	4. Chapter 3

**Fiction is the Truth: We'll whip him into shape.**

 **Satilliteheart: We don't know where. Probably from trying to get out and tripping and falling. And Fiyero… we'll find out about him later on.**

 **PocketSevens: Fiyero is sneaky. He can easily make sure his parents aren't around when he's misbehaving.**

* * *

 **September Year 1155**

Now that Elphaba was thirteen years old, Melena decided that it was high time for her daughter to learn the proper skills of being a proper young lady and future wife. True, her chances of getting a good marriage were slim due to her skin, but she hoped the high position of the Thropp family would help her out where she lacked. She wanted her daughter to marry well and have a good, prosperous life, and not have to go to the nunnery. She had nothing against the women who chose to remain abstinent virgins and dedicate the rest of their lives to the service of the Unnamed God. It just… wasn't her way of life. She enjoyed pleasures that the nuns weren't able to enjoy and she wanted the same for her daughters.

Both of her daughters had done exceptionally well with their tutors. Elphaba was strong in reading and penmanship, while Nessarose was strong in sewing and crafts. Neither of the girls were very good at mathematics. While she was proud of both of her daughters, she couldn't help but feel that something was off with Elphaba. She couldn't place her finger on it, and she knew her daughter wouldn't tell her if she asked, so she was completely in the dark.

"Mother?"

Melena looked up from the queen's gown she was mending at her daughter. "Yes, Elphaba?"

"May I take fencing lessons?"

Melena blinked. The previous week, it had been archery lessons. The week before that, it had been swimming lessons. She couldn't understand why her daughter wanted to do all these outdoor activities instead of staying inside. "Why do you want to take fencing lessons?"

"It just… looks like fun."

"You saw the prince in his lesson, didn't you?"

Elphaba nodded.

"I will think about it," Melena lied through her teeth.

"That's what you said before," Elphaba frowned. "Why can't I learn how to fence?"

"Because it's not a woman's activity."

Elphaba and Melena looked up to see eleven-year-old Nessarose entering the parlor. She had penmanship book and pen in her hand and sat on the sofa. She crossed her ankles and sat up straight as she looked at her sister.

"I don't understand why you want to do _boy_ activities, Fabala," the younger girl sniffed as she opened her book.

"Who says fencing is a boy's activity?" Elphaba challenged.

"Everyone knows it. Boy activities are outside and girl activities are inside. Boys do outside work and girls do inside work."

"Am I directly forbidden from doing it?" Elphaba asked, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms, a very unladylike stance.

"Honestly, Fabala. How do you expect to get a husband if you keep behaving like this?"

"What if I don't want to get married?"

Both Nessa and her mother looked shocked at the green girl's declaration. Nessa just stared wide-eyed at her sister, as did Melena for a beat before she chuckled.

"Don't be silly, Elphaba," she said. "Of course you want to get married."

"But what if I –" Elphaba started.

"You'll get married to a rich lord and have children just like women of our status have been doing for generations."

"Honestly, Fabala, you are so abnormal," Nessa sighed.

Elphaba ignored her sister. "But, Mother –"

"Enough, Elphaba," Melena snapped, glaring at her eldest daughter. "This discussion is over. And I will hear no more talk of you wanting to do any unladylike activities. Am I understood?"

"But –"

 _"Am I understood?"_

Elphaba bit her lip and looked down.

"Elphaba, I am waiting for an answer."

"I understand."

"Good," Melena said as she turned her attention back to the dress. "Have you finished all of your work?"

"Yes, Mother."

"Let me see your essay."

Elphaba hurried away to her room to get her essay. It was four pages of neat, cursive handwriting. She brought the pages to her mother and handed it to her. Melena's eyes scanned the paper and she frowned.

"You didn't do enough reading," Melena said, handing the papers back. "And many words are misspelled. Redo it."

"But I worked very hard on it," Elphaba protested.

"Not hard enough," Melena said, still frowning.

"Maybe if you focused more on what you're supposed to do, you wouldn't have to redo a simple essay," Nessa quipped.

Elphaba was about to retort, but the look her mother gave her stopped her. "Very well."

"And once you finish your essay, practice for your piano lesson. Your teacher says you've been falling behind."

"Yes, Mother," Elphaba said glumly as she went away.

Elphaba spent two hours working on her paper, then her mother came to get her to practice her piano. While Elphaba was glad to get a break from her essay, she really didn't want to go practice her piano. Playing the piano was one of the more "feminine" activities that she was told to master. And she hated it! She hated having to all the "dainty" activities. She just wished she could do something different.

She warmed up with some scales and then took out her Sonata. It was one of the easier songs she knew, so she just played that. Unbeknownst to her, she had a visitor.

"That was wonderful, Elphaba."

Elphaba turned around and quickly stood up. "Thank you, Your Majesty," she said with a curtsy.

The queen smiled at the young girl and slowly approached her. "You have a great talent at the piano."

The green girl smiled politely. Having the queen validate her playing wasn't going to persuade her to like it.

"May I hear you play another song?" the queen asked before Elphaba had a chance to respond to her first comment.

Knowing that she would be unable to say no, Elphaba nodded and sat back down on the bench. Without pulling out the music, she began to play an upbeat minuet from memory.

The queen had settled onto the sofa and smiled as she listened to the young girl play the piano. Even though she heard a few wrong notes, she was very impressed that Elphaba still kept going.

"That was wonderful, Elphaba," the queen smiled as she applauded softly.

Elphaba stood up and curtsied again. "Thank you, Your Majesty. And I apologize for the wrong notes."

"Nonsense, you are doing marvelously. Keep up the good work."

"I will, Your Majesty."

The queen smiled and left. Elphaba sat back down on the bench. She supposed that had counted as her practicing. She had provided entertainment for the queen and she had approved. That had to count for something.

Elphaba had planned on taking a rest when one of the maids came into the parlor. "Ah, Miss Elphaba, there you are. Your dance instructor is here."

Elphaba bit back a sigh. She had completely forgotten about her dance lesson. Her mother had been forcing her to take dance lessons for the past few months, and honestly, she was convinced that she had two left feet. Nessa had agreed, while the instructor simply insisted that she needed to practice more.

"Come along, dear," the maid said when Elphaba still refused to move. "Your sister is also waiting for you."

Elphaba reluctantly followed the maid out and followed her to the dancing hall.

"Ah, Miss Elphaba," the dance instructor smiled when he saw the green girl.

"Finally," Nessarose muttered under her breath.

"Are you ready to begin?"

"I am," Elphaba nodded, though she sounded less confident.

The middle-aged man clapped his hand and readjusted his spectacles. "Wonderful. Now, we will begin with the traditional Vinkun waltz, then go to the minuet, and end with the castle jig." He nodded to the two violinists and the cellist in the corner and they began to play.

Elphaba tried her best as she danced with her instructor, but having two left feet did not really help her. She stepped on his feet, missed a few steps, turned the wrong way, and refused to look up from her feet.

"Miss Nessarose, it's your turn," the instructor said, rolling his left foot to try and regain circulation.

Nessa went to her spot with the instructor and the music started again. Elphaba watched her sister glide across the floor. She was much better at dancing.

 _She's much better at everything_ , Elphaba thought glumly.

"Very well done, Miss Nessarose," the instructor said, applauding the younger Thropp.

Nessa curtsied and sent a smirk at her sister. Elphaba ignored her as she tried to remember the steps for the minuet. The rest of the dance lesson went on the same way; Nessa's floated across the room like a cloud, while Elphaba floated like a sinking boat.

"Well done, girls," the instructor said, and Elphaba knew that statement was directed more to Nessa. "The ball is in a fortnight. Next week, you both will be tested on your skills. Make sure you keep practicing."

And the latter statement was directed more to Elphaba.

"Yes, sir," both girls said.

The instructor nodded and dismissed the girls. Elphaba hurried out and went up to the apartment. As she was walking to her room, she heard the voices of her parents from their chamber.

"… Doesn't practice her dancing or piano. She always wants to do outside activities instead of what she is supposed to do. And you should have heard her talk about how she didn't want to get married. She is constantly late to things. Whatever shall we do with her?" she heard her mother say.

"You know what we can do with her," her father answered. "We cannot give her to the orphanage at this point, but the nunnery might still take her."

"Yes, but… I don't want to do that."

"You had no trouble thinking about doing it when she was born."

"But… things have changed now. She's not… she's not a _bad_ child. She's just… different and… odd."

"In more ways than one."

"How about this; she has until the ball to correct her behavior. If she doesn't, she will go to the nunnery."

Frexspar paused briefly. "Very well," he said with a sigh.

Elphaba quickly backed away from the door. She hurried up to her room and closed the door behind her. Leaning against the door, she tried to calm her racing heart. She couldn't believe her parents were talking about sending her away to a nunnery. The nuns of the Unnamed God were very strict and were very stern about enforcing their rules and regulations. And she wasn't too keen on religion, but she wouldn't _dare_ to even think about telling her parents that. That was practically a death wish.

Her parents didn't think she could be lady-like. She would just have to prove them wrong. As much as it would annoy her, she knew it would be better than living in a convent. Sighing, she knew if she wanted to keep living in the castle with all the luxuries it provided, she knew she would have to make some sacrifices.

* * *

Melena was the first to notice the quick change in Elphaba's behavior. She was practicing her piano more and was even seen practicing her dancing. She didn't think on it very hard; she was just pleased that her daughter was actually beginning to behave like a proper lady. She would miss how upset her daughter truly felt.

Nessa noticed how good her sister had gotten during their dance lesson. The green girl was just as good as her. While she was glad that her sister was beginning to not be as big of an embarrassment, she was also a bit jealous that Elphaba seemingly got better at everything almost overnight.

That evening, Nessarose went in search of her sister. She knocked on her chamber door and got a distracted hum in reply. She took that as permission to enter and slowly pushed the door open.

"Fabala?" she asked, approaching her sister, who was sitting at her desk, seemingly concentrating very hard on something.

"Yes, Nessie?" Elphaba asked.

"Are you okay?"

"Of course," she said with a wince, probably from pricking herself. "Why do you ask?"

"You just… seem different."

Elphaba looked up from the needlepoint she was trying to do. "I am merely trying to act more ladylike. Isn't that what you and Mother and everyone else wanted?"

"Oh, yes. Well… good," Nessa said, then looked at what Elphaba was doing. "That's a very beautiful rabbit."

"It's a cat."

"Not with those ears," Nessa laughed, then stopped when she saw the deep frown on her sister's face. "I apologize."

Elphaba got up and went to sit on her bed.

"Would you like me to help you?" the younger girl asked in an attempt for reconciliation.

"No, thank you," Elphaba said curtly.

Nessa got the message and left, planning to speak to her sister again later.


	5. Chapter 4

**satilliteheart: All in good time!**

 **ElphieNeedsAHug: Of course, but I wouldn't punch Fiyero. He might get angry and take more of his anger out on Elphaba.**

 **LifelongLeahstar: We'll meet one (well… two) of Elphaba's friends in this chapter.**

* * *

Elphaba was in the courtyard, humming to herself as she danced with an invisible partner. The ball was the following evening, and the whole castle was abuzz with planning. Elphaba was in the middle of her waltz when she heard a voice from behind her.

"I do love seeing a marsh frog trying to become a meadowlark."

She immediately stopped and turned around, seeing the prince standing behind her. She curtsied politely, but kept her gaze down.

"What 'call of the bog bug' were you singing this time?" the prince asked with a laugh.

"I was humming a waltz, Your Highness," Elphaba answered calmly.

"A waltz? Why would a bog frog like you be humming a waltz?" Fiyero asked, still through his laughter.

"I was practicing for the ball tomorrow."

Fiyero stopped laughing. " _You're_ going to the ball tomorrow?"

Elphaba blinked. She had been attending the ball since she was ten years old. True, she got some stares, but since her mother was the personal attendant to the queen, no one really gossiped about her or thought poorly of her, especially in the presence of the monarchs. "Yes, Your Highness."

The prince gave her a once-over and smirked. "The only way you would be able to go is if they placed a sack over your head. No one is going to want to look at a seasick string bean all night," he said, completely ignoring what Elphaba had just said.

Elphaba bit back a response, not wanting to anger the prince more.

"Face it, frog," the prince continued, slowly approaching her and Elphaba subconsciously stepped back. "No one likes you. No one ever has, and no one ever will. That's why you don't have any friends."

"Why are you so mean to me?" Elphaba asked, fisting her hands at her sides.

"Because it's fun," Fiyero said with a nonchalant shrug. "And you can't do anything about it. So there's no one to stop me."

"What do you want from me? What is it going to take to get you to stop making fun of me?"

"You'll have to stop being the green weirdo, though that's impossible. Or you could just lock yourself up in the dungeon so we won't have to look at your hideous face."

Elphaba sighed. Though the prince's words did hurt her, she tried not to let it bother her. She knew he wouldn't stop, no matter what she did, so she was just going to have to live with it.

"Now, if you don't mind, I would like to be alone in my courtyard."

Frowning, Elphaba curtsied and turned to leave the prince. She was a few steps away when she felt something hit her back, followed by the prince's laughter. She turned and saw the prince's head thrown back as he laughed, then turned even more to look at her back. She gasped, seeing that the back of her dress was covered in mud.

"That was not funny," Elphaba scowled.

"My laughter says otherwise!"

The green girl sighed. Her dress was ruined. She couldn't go back into the castle like this. Maybe if she could just…

"What are you still doing here, frog? Did I not tell you to vacate my courtyard?"

"I would, Your Highness, but my dress is now soiled."

"Well, whose fault is that?"

"You threw mud at me!"

"I was throwing it at the wall. It is not my fault that you were in the way."

Elphaba was about to respond when a voice interrupted her. She turned around and saw her mother rushing towards her.

"There you are. It is time to try on your dress for the ball," Melena said, then gasped. "Elphaba, what happened to your dress?"

"She fell in the mud," Fiyero said before Elphaba could open her mouth.

Elphaba looked at the prince, but he ignored her as he looked up at Melena.

Melena sighed and shook her head. "We will clean your dress later, but we have to go now." She took Elphaba's hand. "Your Highness," she nodded to the prince before leading Elphaba back inside.

"I'm sorry, Mother," Elphaba said, thinking that her mother would be mad at her.

"I know you didn't fall in the mud, Elphaba," Melena said, opening the door to Elphaba's room.

Elphaba looked at her mother expectantly.

"The prince had mud on his hand."

Elphaba couldn't help but smile. Melena gave her daughter a knowing look back and closed the door behind her. She helped her out of her soiled clothes and into the gown.

"There," Melena said as she led the green girl over to the mirror.

The gown was a royal blue color, made of lightweight velvet, and adorned with golden trimmings around the neckline, elbows, and waist. The front of the golden undercoat was visible in the front and golden silk hung from the wrist-length sleeves. The dress stopped just above Elphaba's ankles, and the green girl had to admit that she liked the way the fabric felt against her skin.

"You look beautiful, darling," Melena smiled, smoothing out the skirt of the dress.

"I look like a green frog in a blue dress," Elphaba frowned, pulling at her right sleeve.

Melena promptly stopped her daughter. "You are not a frog, Fabala. Who called you a frog?"

Elphaba opened her mouth, but promptly stopped herself. "N-No one."

Melena was about to ask more, but a maid knocked on the door and said that the queen was calling for her. She went, charging the maid to help Elphaba and get her a new dress. The maid helped Elphaba out of her dress and helped her into a dark silver dress with dark purple trimmings.

After thanking the maid and watching her leave, Elphaba opted to stay in her room for the rest of the evening. She didn't want to see anyone, especially the prince.

* * *

The next day passed slowly for Elphaba. She spent most of the day in her room reading. Nessa tried to talk her into going for a walk with her through the courtyard, but Elphaba refused, saying that she had a headache and she wanted to rest before the ball.

"If you have a headache, then why are you reading?" Nessa asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Because it helps," Elphaba said shortly.

Nessa gave her an 'I don't believe any of that' look, but sighed and left her sister alone.

Finally, it came time to get ready for the ball. Since Melena was responsible for getting the queen ready, the maids were helping Elphaba and Nessa.

Elphaba's hair was curled and braided into a beautiful waterfall braid, while Nessa's hair was curled and adorned with a sparkly, pink clip.

Nessa's dress was very similar to Elphaba's, except hers was light pink with golden trimmings. Both girls looked stunning (although Elphaba doubted that she looked anything remotely close to stunning).

"There you are, miladies," the maids said when they finished. "You are all ready for the ball."

"Thank you," the girls chorused.

The maids curtsied and hurried out. Nessa smiled at her reflection in the mirror, loving the way the gown looked on her, then realized that her sister wasn't smiling. In fact, she had turned away and was looking down at the floor. Smiling softly, the younger Thropp reached for her sister's hand and clasped it in hers.

Elphaba looked at their joint hands before lifting her gaze to meet her sister's. Chocolate eyes looked into hazel ones and both girls seemed to share a mental sisterly connection.

"You look beautiful, Fabala," Nessa said softly, squeezing her sister's hand.

Elphaba forced a small smile. "Thank you, Nessie. You look beautiful, too."

A trumpet blast signaled that the ball was about to begin. The two girls hurried down the stairs to the grand ballroom and gasped.

Everything was decorated with lights and flowers and gold streamers. Servants were walking around with plates of food and drinks. Everyone was well dressed and mingling and having an enjoyable time.

"There's Mama and Father with the king and queen!" Nessa smiled, pointing to the front.

Elphaba looked up and saw her father standing at the right hand of the king. The queen was on the other side, and Melena was to her left. Fiyero stood in front of his father, looking a bit bored. The royals, along with Frexspar and Melena, were greeting the guests as they arrived. Fiyero played his part well, smiling and greeting people like the proper heir to the throne.

"Ah, young ladies," the king smiled when he saw the two girls approaching them.

"Your Majesties," both girls said in unison as they curtsied. "Thank you for your generous invitation."

"You both look lovely this evening," the queen smiled, then looked at her son. "Fiyero?"

The prince looked up. "Yes, Mother?"

"Don't you have something to say to the girls?"

The prince looked at Nessa and smiled. "You look simply wonderful this evening, Miss Nessarose," he said with a slight bow.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Nessa said as she curtsied again.

"And Miss Elphaba," the king said, narrowing his eyes at his son.

"Yes, of course," Fiyero said dismissively without looking at the green girl.

"Fiyero Liir Magnus Tigulaar, manners," the king said in a whisper only people in close proximity would have heard.

"You look... very nice," Fiyero said, briefly looking at Elphaba.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Elphaba curtsied, and both girls excused themselves.

Elphaba smiled as she looked around the ballroom. Everyone was dressed in their finest attire and looked like they were having a wonderful time. She watched as the women swirled around the dance floor with their partners. Gowns of every color swirled around the dance floor and made the green girl feel as she was part of the fairy tales she had read in her books.

"Ah, Miss Elphaba! Miss Nessarose!"

Elphaba turned and saw one of the upper lords and his wife approaching them, and both girls dipped into a curtsy. "Hello, Lord Caradoc, Lady Caradoc," they said in unison.

"Young ladies," Lady Caradoc said, smiling at the girls. "You both look wonderful."

"Thank you, Madame," Nessarose smiled, and Elphaba smiled politely.

"Have you ladies had the opportunity to speak with Cuthbert this evening?" Lord Caradoc asked, looking around for his son.

"Not as of yet, my lord," Elphaba said, biting back a groan.

"Ah, there he is. With the prince and the Margreaves' son."

Both girls turned and saw Cuthbert standing over the desserts with Fiyero and the margreaves' son, Avaric. All three boys were eyeing the large chocolate cake. Fiyero reached out to steal some icing on his finger, but was promptly stopped by his mother.

"You two must share a dance together," Lord Caradoc said, looking at Elphaba. "Cuthbert!"

Cuthbert looked up and Elphaba bit her lip. The teenage boy hurried over to his father. "Yes, Father?"

"You remember Miss Elphaba, correct?" the lord said, gesturing to the green girl.

Cuthbert smiled and approached Elphaba, took her hand and gave it a polite kiss. "Of course. How could one forget such a… memorable face?"

"You are too kind," Elphaba said sweetly, but felt the urge to gag.

"You two shall share the next dance," Lord Caradoc said as the music started and he escorted his wife to the dance floor.

Cuthbert offered Elphaba his arm and she took it, allowing herself to be led away. She was dreading this dance, but not because Cuthbert was unattractive. Quite the opposite, actually. He was very handsome with his dark blonde hair, dark blue eyes, and soft features. The problem was that he was very conceded. He only talked about himself and nothing (or no one) else. He mostly cared about himself, but cared about others only when there was some reward in it for him. So Elphaba had to spend the entire dance hearing about everything Cuthbert had done and how amazing he was. Every time Elphaba tried to interject or change the subject, Cuthbert would cut her off and continue talking about himself.

Finally, the dance was over and Elphaba was able to escape. Cuthbert bowed to her and she curtsied before leaving the dance floor. Breathing a sigh of relief, she hurried over to the punch table and a servant poured a cup for her.

"Hello, Miss Elphaba."

Elphaba looked up and smiled. The knight-in-training, Hann, smiled a radiant smile as he looked down at her, his dark blue eyes gleaming. "Hello, Hann."

"Are you enjoying the ball?"

"I suppose. I had to share a dance with Cuthbert," she said in a whisper so no one else would hear her. "I would have rather sit on a chair covered in pins."

Hann flashed her a knowing smile. The green girl had to bite back a dreamy sigh as they shared a look. Elphaba and Hann had become friends when Hann was sent to the palace as a knight apprentice two years prior. He was currently fifteen; two years old than the green girl, but that didn't stop them from forming a close friendship.

"Miss Elphaba, would you do me the honor of sharing a dance with me before I resume my guard duty?" Hann asked with a slight bow.

Elphaba was sure she was blushing as she accepted the dance and Hann's arm. Elphaba enjoyed dancing with the squire much more than Cuthbert. As they danced, she felt like they were floating on a private cloud and it was just the two of them there. As soon as it began, the dance ended and Hann bowed. Elphaba curtsied and allowed Hann to escort her off the dance floor.

"It has been my pleasure dancing with you, milady," Hann said, kissing the back of Elphaba's hand.

"The pleasure was all mine, good sir," Elphaba said with a polite nod.

Hann smiled and went to his post at the door of the ballroom. Elphaba watched him as he went to the door and saluted to the current guard before taking his place. She was so distracted that she didn't hear the voice calling to her.

"Elphie! Elphaba! ELPHABA!"

Startled, the green girl turned around and came face-to-face with a young girl her age. Her blonde hair was curled and styled into an elegant bun. Her features were soft and delicate and the only makeup she had on was a bit of blush and lip gloss. Her gown was a fuchsia color with a layer of tulle underneath the fabric. Her light blue eyes sparkled as she smiled at the green girl.

"Princess Galinda," Elphaba said as she curtsied. "Forgive me, I was distracted."

Princess Galinda Arduenna Tigulaar was the daughter of the queen's younger brother. They had a royal residence in Aladin Hills, which the royal family made frequent visits to, often with Frex and Melena. Elphaba had never been to the royal residence, since long carriage rides made her sick. The first time the two girls had met, they were both five years old. The prince had come for a brief visit to his older sister. After getting over Elphaba's green skin, Galinda declared that Elphaba was now her friend and that she was going to give her a makeover. Elphaba couldn't say no (well, she could have, but she didn't want to deal with _those_ repercussions), and the rest is history.

A giggle and the blonde launched herself at the green girl, wrapping her arms around her. "It's so good to see you. I've missed you so much, Elphie!"

"I've missed you, too," Elphaba said, gently returning the hug. In all honesty, she was perfectly fine without the blonde princess' bubbliness and talkativeness. But she would rather have that than have the blonde be like her cousin.

Galinda gently pulled and looked her friend up and down. "You are _far_ too skinny! Come, let's go to the dessert cart!" Taking Elphaba's hand, she pulled her away and dragged her to the cart.

Elphaba bit back a gasp as she tried to twist her arm so it wouldn't break. She could already tell that her night was far from over.

* * *

 **Elphaba's dress is posted on my blog.**


	6. Chapter 5

**Satilliteheart: The queen was born royal and her husband took the royal name. It's happened before in history.**

* * *

The ball lasted well into the night, but all of the children in attendance were sent to bed early. Nessa started to fall asleep after dessert and was escorted to her room by a maid. Cuthbert and Avaric went home with their parents as they began to get tired. Galinda would be spending the night and pouted when she was sent to bed. She tried to talk her way into staying up later, but her parents were very stern about her staying up any later. Both she and Elphaba were escorted away and prepared for bed. Galinda insisted that Elphaba be brought to her room so she could talk to her. Even though Elphaba was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to go to sleep, she obeyed the princess and went to her guest room.

Galinda, much to Elphaba's dismay (but not to her surprise), was wide awake and showed no signs of going to sleep anytime soon. She insisted that Elphaba sit on the bed so she could brush her hair. Elphaba quietly sat down while she listened to Galinda tell her all about the ball as though she wasn't there.

"Oh, the music and dancing and food and dresses and music and dancing were simply magical!" Galinda gushed as she ran a hairbrush through Elphaba's hair. "Oh Elphie, what was your favorite part of the ball?"

When Elphaba didn't respond, Galinda slapped her shoulder with the brush, albeit a bit harder than necessary.

"Elphie!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Elphaba said, resisting the urge to rub her now-sore shoulder.

"Why are you all distractified?"

"I was not distractified. I was distracted."

"That is what I said, Elphie."

"Of course. Forgive me, Your Highness."

Galinda was silent for a while as she continued to brush Elphaba's hair. "Did you see how handsome Avaric looked in his dress shirt?"

"I did," Elphaba agreed softly.

"And I saw you dance with Cuthbert," Galinda said with a giggle. "You two dance so wonderfully together."

"We do?" Elphaba asked, turning around in surprise.

"Don't move, Elphie," Galinda instructed as she turned Elphaba back around and continued to brush her hair. "And yes, you do." A pause. "Do you think you'll marry him?"

"Marry him? I… don't know."

"Even though he very handsome, he can also be a bit pompous at times."

 _A_ bit _pompous at times?_ Elphaba wondered.

"Although, you've spoken to him more, Elphie. What is he really like?"

"He's very pompous," the green girl confessed softly before she could stop herself.

Galinda giggled and continued to run the brush through Elphaba's hair. "Have you started your cycle yet?"

Elphaba had no clue what the princess was talking about. "I-I'm sorry?"

"Your cycle, Elphie," Galinda repeated as she continued to brush the green girl's hair.

"My… cycle?"

The blonde sighed. "Your _monthly_."

Elphaba understood what the princess meant and blanched. Why was Galinda asking her such a personal question?

"Elphaba, have you?"

"Um… I… no, I haven't."

Galinda gasped. "Oh, Elphie." She wrapped her arms around her friend in a sympathetic way. "I'm so sorry."

"Why?" Elphaba asked before her brain could tell her mouth to remain shut. She _really_ wanted to change the subject.

"You're not a woman until you get your monthly. I got mine for the first time two months ago. I'm becoming a woman while you're still a girl and we're both the same age."

 _What is it going to take to get Galinda to either stop talking or change the subject?_ Elphaba thought. She knew the former was very close to impossible, so she decided to try the latter. "Did you see the gown the Duchess of Oxbridge was wearing?"

The princess immediately chitter-chattered away about how beautiful the gown was and how she would design her dream gown. Elphaba breathed a sigh of relief. She really didn't want to talk about… subjects like that.

After what seemed like hours, a maid finally came to the room and told the girls that it was time for bed. After saying goodnight, Elphaba was escorted back to her room by the maid. It didn't take long after collapsing into her bed for Elphaba to drift off, her dreams filled with the festivities of the ball, while trying to block out what Galinda had said.

* * *

Elphaba watched from her window as Hann and Fiyero practiced fencing. It looked like so much fun, but the green girl was stuck inside. She was supposed to be working on a sewing sampler, but she was so distracted by the sparring outside.

"Elphaba," Melena said as she entered her daughter's room. "Are you finished?"

The green girl tore her gaze away from the window. "Almost."

The queen's maid slowly approached her daughter and looked at her sampler. "This isn't even half-way completed."

"I'm sorry," Elphaba said. She pricked herself with the needle and inhaled as she shook her sore finger.

"I want the sampler finished before lunch."

"Yes, Mother," Elphaba said, watching as her mother left and closed the door behind her.

The green girl let out a breath as she turned her gaze back to the window. The two boys were still sparring. It looked like so much fun. At least… more fun than sewing.

Later that afternoon, Hann was in the stables, taking care of his horse. He heard footsteps approaching and, thinking it was the prince, turned around, but he was surprised to see who was really there.

"Oh. Hello, Miss Elphaba," Hann said, surprised.

"Hello, Hann," Elphaba smiled.

"Can I… can I help you with something?"

"I was wondering if you could…" Elphaba looked around to make sure no one else was there. "Teach me how to fence."

Hann blinked. "Wh-What?"

"Teach me how to fence… and how to horseback ride… and how to… how to be a knight."

"Be a knight…?" Hann repeated, still confused.

Elphaba thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes."

"May I… ask why?"

"I'm bored," Elphaba confessed out loud for the first time. "All of the activities that I'm supposed to do are… not me. I want something different."

"You want to become a knight? You're… a girl, and you want to be a knight."

"Yes. Well, no, not exactly. I just… want action. I want adventure. I want to learn something new and fun. I don't want to stay inside and grow pale from never seeing the sun."

Hann gave her a look.

Elphaba sighed. "You know what I mean."

"How much trouble would we be in for doing this?"

"None… as long as we don't get caught."

"And why, pray tell, are you coming to me?"

"Because you're my friend," Elphaba said as she slowly stepped closer to the knight and took his hand. "And you're skilled enough to teach me."

Hann looked at their joined hands and sighed. "Alright, suppose I start training you and suppose we don't get caught. Then what?"

"Then what?"

"What would you do with knowing how to fence, horseback ride, string a bow and arrow, and everything else? Then what? It's not like you'll be able to show off your newly acquired skills anywhere."

"I just… I want something to do. Something that involves anything but sitting idly in the parlor."

"… You are serious about this?"

"I wouldn't have come to you if I wasn't."

The squire knight looked at the green girl and his lips slowly curled into a small smile. "Very well. You've convinced me. We start tomorrow morning before sunrise."

"Before sunrise?"

"I thought we had to be sneaky. Meet me in the far wall tomorrow morning."

Elphaba could only watch as Hann bowed and walked past her out of the stable, disappearing from sight. Letting out a long huff of air, she wondered what she had gotten herself into.

* * *

Elphaba was woken up the following morning to rocks hitting her window. Groaning and yawning, she shuffled over to see who it was.

"Elphaba!" someone whisper-shouted from below.

Elphaba looked down and rubbed her eyes, the blurry, small figure of Hann appearing below, already dressed. "Hann?"

"Time to start!"

Elphaba groaned again, wanting nothing more than to go back to bed and not get up again until the sun did, but then remembered what she had said to Hann the previous day. "I'll be down in a few minutes," she said before disappearing.

After freshening up, she met up with Hann and the two snuck past the guards and out the castle walls.

"Where are we going?" Elphaba asked.

"You'll see," Hann said as he adjusted his bag strap over his shoulder.

Soon, the two came to an old pyramid. Elphaba looked up at the tall structure, confused. "Why are we at the Great Grassland Pyramid?"

"Because I want you to climb to the top."

Elphaba looked at the steps that seemed to go on forever. "Why? I thought I would be learning how to fence."

"Before we can do that, you need to build endurance. Also, I don't think this would be the most practical in a dress."

Elphaba looked down at the thin, yet practical dress she was wearing. "I don't have anything other than dresses and skirts."

"I figured that much," Hann said as he rummaged through his bag. "That's why I brought you these." He pulled out a spare pair of horseback riding breeches and a rope and handed them to the green girl.

Elphaba looked at the pants and went behind a large bush to put it on. When she came out, the skirt of her dress was inside the breeches, which was secured in place with the rope. "What am I doing exactly?"

"Run to the top."

Elphaba looked at the steps and gulped down the lump in her throat before starting to run. A few clock-ticks later, she stopped, her hands resting on her knees as she struggled to catch her breath. She looked over her shoulder and realized that she had only climbed around twelve steps. She flashed Hann a sheepish smile before continuing to hurry up the steps. She made it up ten more before tripping and falling.

"Are you alright?" Hann asked.

Elphaba groaned.

"Why don't we take it a little bit at a time? Since you did around twenty steps, that's what we'll do every day until you can make it to the top."

The green girl pushed herself to her feet and walked down. She rubbed her knee, hoping she didn't have a cut. This was definitely _not_ what she had bargained for.

* * *

The two snuck back into the castle and Elphaba hurried back into her room. She closed the door behind her and sighed. She went over to her bed and flopped down, wanting nothing more than to sleep after what she had just been through. She had no idea how strenuous it was. She just expected to pick up a fencing sword and learn the moves she had seen done in the courtyard. That's what she wanted to do. But she also trusted Hann, and she appointed him as her secret trainer. Whatever he said, she had to listen to him.

"Miss Elphaba?" came a knock at the door. "It's time to get ready now."

Elphaba looked down and realized she was still wearing the breeches. She couldn't let anyone see her like this and she didn't have time to try and undo the rope before the maid came in. Thinking quickly, she jumped back into bed and pulled the covers over her body.

The door opened and the maid entered. "Good morning, Miss Elphaba."

Elphaba groaned, pretending to still be sleepy… although it wasn't a full pretense.

"It is time to get up now," the maid said, approaching the bed.

Elphaba slid further under the covers, still not wanting the maid to see her.

"Miss Elphaba, is everything alright?" the maid asked, having never seen the green girl behave like this.

"Yes," Elphaba whispered through a fake yawn, thinking quickly. "But, could you… run me a warm bath?"

The maid blinked and curtsied. "Of course, Miss Elphaba."

The green girl watched as the maid walked out of her room and closed the door behind her. Once she was gone, Elphaba jumped up and undid the rope holding the breeches up. Looking around her room, the green girl tried to hide this in a place where it was the least likely to be found. She ended up hiding the breeches and rope under a secret lose floorboard in the corner of her room. She undressed and put on her robe just as the maid came to escort her to the bath.

Keeping her secret was going to be a bit harder than she anticipated, and she didn't expect it to be easy to begin with.


	7. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the late chapter, everyone! College life!**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: I put that reference in there just for you!**

* * *

"Please remind me again why we are here," Elphaba said, trying to balance on the edge of the small rowboat.

Hann had taken her down to the pond without much of a preamble as to why. "Because," the young knight said, standing on the other side of the boat in front of her. "You must build your balance."

"So what do I have t- AHH!" the green girl screamed as Hann jolted the boat, sending her flying into the water.

"Why did you do that?" Elphaba asked when her head broke the surface.

"To tell you to keep your balance," Hann smirked.

"You could have just said that."

"But then I wouldn't have had as much fun."

The green girl rolled her eyes. "This is absurd. Why can't we do –"

"Because you have to learn the basics first. These are the basic foundations for knightly training. If you just learned the activities first, you would have a much harder time.

Elphaba groaned as she climbed back into the boat.

"You said you wanted my help," Hann pointed out. "And you also said you would listen to me."

"I know," the green girl sighed. She straddled her legs on the two edges of the boat. "I'm ready."

"Are you?" Hann smiled and began to jostle the boat from side to side. Elphaba fell a few times, but once she got the hang of it, she was able to stay on top of the boat.

"Good," the squire knight said and saw Elphaba relax. Smirking, he jumped up, and when he came down, the other side of the boat flew up, sending Elphaba flying back into the water.

The green girl resurfaced to find Hann laughing at her. "That wasn't funny."

"You just weren't ready," Hann said, catching his breath.

"You said that I did well," Elphaba said, pushing her wet braid away from her face.

"Shall we try again?" Hann asked with a slight smirk.

Elphaba glared at him, but quickly softened and nodded. After multiple tries and many falls, the soaking wet green girl managed to keep her balance on the boat.

"Very good, Elphaba," Hann smiled.

"Thank you," Elphaba smiled back, then smirked. She quickly jumped and with a surprised yelp, Hann flew backwards into the water.

"I suppose I deserved that," the squire said when he resurfaced, wiping the water from his face.

"Yes, I suppose you did."

Hann climbed back up onto the boat with a slight laugh and tried a few more times. "You're getting very good at this, Elphaba."

"Thank you," the green girl blushed, and not just because she was cold from the water.

"We should… try off and head back," Hann said as Elphaba sat down in the boat.

"Oh. Of course," Elphaba said as the young man began to row the boat back to the land.

* * *

 **November Year 1155**

Elphaba smiled as she passed Hann as they raced up the pyramid. The knight slowed his run to a stop and placed his hands on his knees to catch his breath. Before she knew it, the green girl was at the top and smiled at her accomplishment. She turned around to see the top of Hann's head appearing.

"Great... job... Elphaba," he smiled, breathing hard.

"Thank you," the green girl blushed, breathing deeply.

"I think you're ready." He handed her one of the fencing swords he was carrying.

"We're doing that? Up here?"

"Why not? I mean, we're already up here."

"It's so cold."

"Then it's a good thing we're wearing long sleeves."

The squire spent the rest of the time before sunrise teaching Elphaba some basic fencing moves. The green girl was more than happy to finally be done with that tedious training and get to do the fun activities.

"Lunge and attack!" Hann called as they spared. "Remember to stay light on your feet. You want to be as light as a feather."

"The sun's coming up," Elphaba noticed, stopping and Hann tagged her with his sword. "We should get back."

As the two walked back down the pyramid, Elphaba noticed that Hann was avoiding her gaze. "Hann?"

"Yes?"

"Is there something wrong?"

"No. Why would there be?"

"It's just that you… well, never mind."

The older boy glanced at her briefly and the two walked back to the palace in silence.

"Thank you… again," Elphaba said before they parted ways. "For teaching me. I… really appreciate it."

"Oh. You're… um… welcome. You're a… fast learner," Hann replied.

"Oh. Thank you."

Hann felt his face getting hot, and for some reason, he wanted nothing more than to kiss the green girl. He slowly reached for her hand and grasped it. Elphaba looked surprised as she looked down at their joint hands, but didn't say anything in protest. Slowly, Hann began to close the distance between them, all of his body heat rushing to his face. He was pretty sure his heart had leaped into his throat, but he didn't even care.

"I… I have to go," Elphaba whispered when their faces were very close.

Hann immediately pulled away and awkwardly cleared his throat. "Oh. Yes, of course. Um… I will… see you later… possibly… hopefully… maybe."

Elphaba nodded and hurried away. Hann watched her go and silently cursed himself for his stupidity and lack of finesse.

The green girl snuck back into her room and changed back into her nightgown, hiding her training clothes, before climbing into bed. She didn't know exactly what had happened, but she had a pretty good idea. Did she want to kiss Hann? Did she like him like that? Of course she liked him as a friend, but did she _like_ him as... more than a friend? Deciding that her feminine feelings were too complicated to sort through before breakfast, the green girl closed her eyes and allowed her body to get some more rest.

A few moments later, the maid came to wake her up. Even though she really didn't want to, she slid out of bed and began to get ready for the day. She went through her daily activities quietly, not enjoying a single moment. She passed the prince a few times, and each time had to endure another snide comment or insult. She had grown accustomed to it and simply began to ignore the comments.

As Melena walked down the halls with the queen's fresh linen sheets, she paused in front of the ajar music room door. She peeked inside and saw her eldest daughter practicing the piano. Nessarose was in the corner, sewing. She smiled at the sight of her two daughters together and continued to her destination.

"That was wonderful, Fabala," Nessarose smiled when Elphaba finished the song.

"Thank you, Nessie," the green girl smiled. She really did miss these little moments when she and her sister were together, and not arguing. She could tell that her sister liked it as well, and that made both girls very happy.

"Can you play something else?" Nessarose asked as she put her sewing down and approached the piano. "Ooh, can you play my song for my singing lesson?"

"Where is it?" Elphaba asked.

The younger girl went to the basket that held the sheet music and pulled out a book. "Here," she said as she placed it on her piano.

Elphaba looked at the song and placed her fingers on the keys. After she played the introduction, her sister joined in.

 _"Hath any loved you well, down there,_

 _Summer or winter through?_

 _Down there, have you found any fair_

 _Laid in the grave with you?_

 _Tis death's long kiss a richer kiss_

 _Than mine was wont to be–_

 _Or have you gone to some far bliss_

 _And quite forgotten me?_

 _What soft enamoring of sleep_

 _Hath you in some soft way?_

 _What charmed death holdeth you with deep_

 _Strange lure by night and day?_

 _A little space below the grass,_

 _Our of the sun and shade;_

 _But worlds away from me, alas,_

 _Down there where you are laid."_

"You have such a pretty voice, Nessa," the green girl smiled when the song finished.

"Thank you, Fabala. I'm going to enter the singing competition at the winter solstice festival."

The winter solstice festival was scheduled for December 20th. Each of the four countries in Oz hosted their own festival. In the Vinkus, villages gathered together to host competitions and games. It was a very festive time of year. The royals had their own festival within the castle walls. Everyone participated in the activities, including the castle staff.

"Which competition are you going to enter, Fabala?"

"Oh… I…" Elphaba knew she could enter the fencing competition, provided she hide her true identity somehow, but knew she couldn't say that to her sister. "I might do the…"

"You should do the music competition," Nessarose chirped before Elphaba could finish. "You are getting so much better at the piano."

"You think so?" Elphaba asked softly.

The brunette smiled and nodded. "I know so."

"Thank you, Nessie."

The two sisters spent the rest of the afternoon together. For a moment, Elphaba actually forgot that she was unhappy with her life. She was just so happy to spend time with her sister just like old times.

* * *

Hann hummed to himself as he brushed his horse's mane. He wasn't the type to be humming idly, but today, he was feeling a bit gleeful today. He heard the door to the stables open, but didn't pay attention. He heard someone clear their throat behind him and he whipped around.

"Oh, Elphaba. Hi. What are you doing h-" Hann asked, but didn't get to finish because Elphaba closed the distance between them and pressed her lips against his. Hann's eyes widened in surprise, but he slowly relaxed. The two pulled apart, both a bit breathless. "Elphaba," he whispered once he regained his voice. "What… um… wow… that was… uh… unexpected. Nice… but unexpected."

"I'm sorry," Elphaba quickly apologized. "I… I don't know what came over me."

"Why are you apologizing?"

Elphaba was silent for a moment. "I wanted to do that before," she said softly, yet boldly. "I wanted to do that before, but…"

"What was stopping you?"

"I… don't know. Maybe the fact that I was hot and… sweaty. And we were running and fencing."

"May I… ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Do you… like me?"

Elphaba blinked. "I… I believe so. I mean, aren't friends supposed to like each other?"

"Yes, but friends don't go seeking each other out to kiss in the stables and without preamble."

"I mean… do you like me?"

"Who kissed who?"

"You tried to kiss me before."

"And you ran away."

"I was just… confused."

"Confused about what?"

"… How I felt."

"Well… do you know how you feel now?"

"About you?"

"Sure."

Elphaba thought for a moment as she looked into Hann's eyes. "I… I like you, Hann. As… as more than a friend."

"And… I like you, too, Elphaba. As… as more than a friend."

Both teenagers were blushing deeply as they lapsed into a comfortable silence.

"Out of all the places to have a first kiss, I don't think the royal stables make the list," Hann chuckled softly.

"I never dreamed about having my first kiss, let alone worried about where it would be," the green girl admitted softly.

"What about a… second kiss?" Hann asked and the two kissed again, this time much softer.

When they pulled away, Elphaba was blushing deeply, her cheeks a slightly darker shade of green. "I was counting on you saying that."

But what she didn't count on were the extra pair of eyes watching her and Hann.

* * *

 **Song Used:**

 ** _Song from Chartivel_** **by** **Marie de France**

 **Dun dun dunnnnnn! Who do you think saw Elphaba and Hann kiss?**


	8. Chapter 7

**Satilliteheart: Elphaba and Fiyero will end up together, but not without a few trials.**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Fiyero is going to make Elphaba's life miserable, regardless if he saw or not.**

 **PocketSevens: Wow. At least now I know how seriously Glinda is taking this. I'll just have to remember not to get on her bad side. Oz knows what she'll do!**

* * *

Nessarose watched her sister as she walked down the hallway. The green girl was doing something very out of character for her; she was humming… for no reason. She was just walking down the corridors… humming. Elphaba _never_ hummed. She followed her sister back to her room and silently watched as she sat at her vanity and began to brush her hair.

"Fabala?" Nessa asked.

Elphaba jumped slightly, startled, but relaxed when she saw her sister. "Yes, Nessie?"

"Are you okay?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"No reason."

"No, Nessa. Why did you ask me that?"

"It's just… you're acting… funny," Nessarose said, approaching her sister. "And not in an amusing way. More like… a weird way."

Elphaba blinked.

"You were humming… for no reason. Why?"

"Can't I be happy?"

"Why are you so happy?"

"Am I not supposed to be?"

"I… I was just asking. There has to be a reason for your sudden happiness."

Elphaba ignored her sister and went back to brushing her hair. "There's no specific reason at all."

"Not even Squire Hann?"

Elphaba froze, but quickly recovered… or so she thought. "What about him?"

"You like him?"

"He is a very nice person, yes."

"So… you just kiss everyone you like… in the stables?"

Elphaba whipped around. "How do you know about that?"

"Honestly, Fabala. You're not as sneaky as you think," Nessarose said, rolling her eyes. "What is going on between the two of you? And does it relate to the dirty riding breeches you've been hiding?"

"You've been spying on me?"

"Did you honestly think that no one would notice you sneaking off early in the morning before sunrise with him?"

"You _have_ been spying on me!"

"And you're lucky I'm confronting you on it. Imagine if it were Mama or Father? There would be a whole lot more yelling involved."

Elphaba sighed. "Alright. What do you want?"

"Want? I don't want anything. I just came to warn you."

"Warn me about what, Nessa?"

The younger Thropp blinked. "Mama and Father didn't tell you yet?"

"Tell me what?"

"Nothing."

"Nessa, enough with your games! Just tell me."

"I was just thinking about what a scandal it would be if people were to find out that you were sneaking around your betrothed."

"Nessarose, that is – wait, my _what_?"

"You're betrothed. No one told you?"

"What?!"

"You're engaged-to-be-married to Lord Cuthbert."

Elphaba put her hairbrush down. "When did you find out?"

"Lord and Lady Caradoc just left. They signed the marriage paper with Mama and Father."

Elphaba paled. "What?"

"Oh, Elphaba. You are being very overdramatic about this. It's not like the wedding is next week. You will both be married in three years."

"Marry Cuthbert? That is absurd!"

"It's not absurd, and I suggest that attitude doesn't leave this room. It's a good marriage for you, Fabala. It's either marry him or go to the nunnery."

Elphaba sighed, remembering overhearing that conversation her parents had. But honestly, walking through a burning furnace sounded like a better idea than marrying Cuthbert.

"Don't worry, Fabala. Cuthbert isn't that bad."

"So you admit he's not good?"

"I didn't say that."

"But you implied it."

"Look, I am not going to argue over this with you. It's out of your hands, so you'll just have to do as you're told. It's tradition."

Elphaba turned away from her sister. "Thank you, _Nessa_."

"And you should be grateful. It's a miracle that Mama and Father were even able to arrange a marriage for you, with your skin oddity and all."

A low growl slipped from Elphaba's throat and she stood up, pushed past her sister, and walked out her room, ignoring Nessa's calls for her to come back. She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't notice who was approaching her.

"Watch where you're going, vegetable!" the prince shouted as Elphaba looked up.

"Pardon me, Your Highness," Elphaba said with a curtsy.

"You are going to make me late for my fencing lesson!" Fiyero said, roughly pushing past Elphaba and continuing on his way. "And don't frogs belong outdoors?" he called over his shoulder.

Before Elphaba had a chance to respond, Fiyero had disappeared around the corner. Sighing, the green girl rolled her eyes and continued to wander through the castle.

"Ah, Miss Elphaba, there you are!"

Elphaba turned around to see a maid hurrying over to her. "Your parents have requested your presence in the sitting room."

"Okay, Maylah," Elphaba said, following the maid down the corridor.

When Elphaba got to the sitting room, she found her mother and father sitting on the sofa together, smiling. Melena had a parcel on her lap, and Frexspar was holding a rolled scroll in his hands.

"Elphaba, come sit. We have a surprise for you," Melena said as she scooted over to make room for Elphaba in between herself and Frexspar.

Elphaba sat down in between her parents. "What's in the box?" she asked her mother, even though she had a pretty good idea of what it was.

"It's a present for you," Melena said as she handed her daughter the box.

Elphaba slowly opened the parcel and found a beautiful jeweled necklace inside. The string was made of fine gold and adorned with tiny diamonds. In the center, a large crystal gleamed brighter than the green girl had ever seen.

"Do you like it?" Melena asked.

"It's beautiful," Elphaba whispered. She had never been one for jewelry, but the necklace was indeed beautiful.

"It was a present from Lord and Lady Caradoc and Cuthbert," Frexspar said.

"Why would they send gifts to me?" Elphaba asked, playing the innocent.

Melena and Frexspar looked at each other before redirecting their gazes to their eldest daughter. "Because you and Cuthbert are going to be married," Frexspar said.

"Married?" Elphaba blinked. So Nessarose wasn't lying…

"Yes. In three years time," Melena said. "Isn't that wonderful news?"

 _Where's a furnace when you need one?_ Elphaba thought, but didn't dare say that out loud. "It's… wonderful."

"I know it's a lot to process. That's why Lord and Lady Caradoc have invited you to tea next week."

"Wonderful," Elphaba said, trying to distract herself with the necklace.

"Excellent," Frexspar said as he stood. "I must go back to the throne room now."

Melena accepted the soft kiss from her husband and watched as he left. "Do you not like Cuthbert, Elphaba? Isn't he handsome?"

"Yes, but he is also very conceited."

"Conceited?"

"He only talks and cares about himself."

"I'm sure that's not true, Fabala," Melena said with a slight laugh, shaking her head. "You've only met him a few times."

"And in those few times, I've concluded that he is very conceited."

"I'm sure it's not as bad as you make it out to be, Fabala," Melena said, kissing her daughter's forehead as she fixed the necklace around her neck. "And the necklace looks beautiful on you."

"Thank you," Elphaba said quietly as she watched her mother rise to her feet and leave the sitting room. She fingered the necklace before deciding to go back to her room. When she got there, she found her sister still there. "Oh, you're still here."

The younger Thropp turned around, looking very apologetic. "I… I'm sorry for what I said before, Fabala."

"It's okay," Elphaba said, though she didn't really mean it.

The two sisters were silent for a while. Elphaba went to sit back at her vanity, while Nessarose settled herself on the bed. "Where did you get that necklace?" the brunette asked. "It's very pretty."

"It's a gift from Cuthbert," Elphaba said shortly.

"A betrothal gift?"

"Yes."

"Oh. Do you like it?"

"I don't hate it."

"That is not what I meant."

"I know," Elphaba sighed. "I'm sorry, Nessa. It's just… I really don't like Cuthbert, and I know I don't have a choice."

"I'm sorry, Fabala. So, when are you going to tell Hann?"

"Tell him what?"

"That you're betrothed."

"Oh. I don't know."

Nessarose let that part of the conversation drop. "So, are you going to answer my question?"

"I already told you that I don't know, Nessa."

"No, not that. My question about the dirty riding breeches from before."

"Why have you been snooping through my things? More importantly, how did you find it?"

"Remember when I said that you weren't as sneaky as you thought. The same applies to your choice of hiding places. I'm surprised no one else has found it already. Does that have anything to do with Hann?"

"Why do you need to know?"

"Come on, Fabala! Just tell me! Sisters always share secrets with each other," Nessarose pleaded.

Elphaba glanced over at her sister. "You need to promise me that you won't tell another soul."

"I promise."

"Sister swear it."

Nessarose sighed, but raised her right hand and signed a cross over her heart. "I sister swear."

Elphaba hurried to her door to make sure no one else was around. Once she was sure that the coast was clear, she closed the door and sat next to her sister on the bed. "I've been learning how to fence," she whispered.

"With Hann?" Nessarose said, too loudly for Elphaba's liking.

"Shh! Yes, with Hann. He's been teaching me how to fence and this week, we start horseback riding."

"Why is he doing that? It sounds like he teaching you how to become a –" Nessarose's eyes widened as she realized what was actually going on. "Elphaba, have you misplaced your mind?"

"Is it not still in my head?" Elphaba asked, feigning panic as she touched her head.

"Elphaba, this is serious! What if you get caught? You and Hann could get in serious trouble."

"We're not going to get caught, especially if someone keeps her promise and keeps her mouth shut," Elphaba hissed.

"Out of all the stupid – Elphaba, what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that I should be allowed to have some fun while I am still young… and unmarried."

"But this… this goes against so many rules, not to mention your obvious complete disregard for the traditions. You cannot become a knight!"

"I don't actually plan on becoming a knight, Nessa! Good Oz! I just want to have a bit of fun."

"Elphaba, you have to give up this little game before it becomes too late. Both of you could get in serious trouble! You'd be sent to the nunnery until your marriage to Cuthbert!"

"And if I become a nun, I won't have to marry Cuthbert. Champion idea, Nessa!" Elphaba exclaimed with a smile.

The brunette groaned and flopped down on the bed. "Why must you be so difficult?"

"I suppose it is one of my enchanting qualities," Elphaba said with a slight laugh.

* * *

Elphaba looked at herself in the mirror. She was getting ready for her tea with Cuthbert, but she was anything but ready. She was wearing a dark fuchsia dress with royal blue trimmings and a full skirt that stopped at her ankles. Her hair was curled and styled into a half bun, allowing the rest of her hair to flow down her back. She was wearing the necklace, knowing it was the first of many gifts from her future family. She supposed she should enjoy being showered with expensive gifts; she just wished it was from anyone other than Cuthbert.

"Miss Elphaba, are you ready to leave? The carriage is waiting," a maid said as she came into Elphaba's room.

"Yes, Seyla, I'm ready," the green girl said, forcing a smile.

The maid smiled as she escorted the young girl down the stairs to the carriage waiting to take her to the Caradoc mansion. Once she was inside, the carriage pulled off. Elphaba watched as the castle disappeared from her sight, trying to put on a brave face and make the best of what was to come. She also tried not to get carriage sick, with was a feat on its own, but she knew she had to overcome it. Especially since numerous carriage rides were in her not-so-distant future.

Instead, she thought about Hann. The two had started her horseback riding lessons, and after many falls, she was beginning to get the hang of it. Though, the hardest part for her was trying to hide her limp. She had been trying to come up with excuses, saying that she had tripped over this or that, but they had been very flimsy lies, but no one thought to question her on it. Nessa however, knew exactly what really happened, but kept her promise to her sister and didn't tell anyone.

When she got to the mansion, a footman helped her down and escorted her inside. "May I present Miss Elphaba Thropp," the footman said as he announced Elphaba to the masters of the house.

Lord and Lady Caradoc, along with Cuthbert, stood to welcome the green girl. "Welcome, Miss Elphaba," Lord Caradoc said, ushering Elphaba to a seat, conveniently right next to Cuthbert.

"Thank you for your generous invitation, Lord and Lady Caradoc," Elphaba said politely with a slight curtsy. "And thank you, Master Cuthbert."

The young lord nodded and sat down, and Elphaba sat down next to him.

"Would you like milk or sugar, Miss Elphaba?" Lady Caradoc asked as she poured Elphaba's tea.

"Milk please, thank you," Elphaba said, watching as Lady Caradoc added milk to her tea.

"Would you care for a cake or biscuit?"

"Cake please, thank you," Elphaba said, and Lady Caradoc placed a small piece of teacake on her plate. She really didn't want tea or cake, but knew it was very impolite to refuse.

The rest of the tea was filled with many "Yes, pleases" and "thank yous" and small talk that Elphaba didn't even bother to try and become invested in. Even though the room was very spacious, she felt like the air was being sucked from her lungs and she tried very hard not to pass out. The lord and lady were very polite, and if their politeness was forced, they were very good at hiding it. Elphaba supposed it came with years of practice. Cuthbert, however, looked as glum as Elphaba felt.

"Is there anything you would like to ask Miss Elphaba, Cuthbert?" Lord Caradoc asked his son.

"No, Father," Cuthbert said.

"You have barely said a word this whole time," Lady Caradoc pointed out.

"I don't have anything to say."

"Very well, then," Lord Caradoc said with a slight sigh. He stood and his wife stood with him, and Elphaba and Cuthbert followed suit.

"I trust you enjoyed yourself Miss Elphaba," Lady Caradoc said in a formal goodbye.

"I have. Thank you for hosting me," Elphaba said with a curtsy.

Lord and Lady Caradoc nodded and looked at their son. "Cuthbert."

"Goodbye, Miss Elphaba," Cuthbert said as he delicately kissed the back of Elphaba's knuckles.

"Goodbye, Master Cuthbert," Elphaba said, forcing a small smile.

The green girl was escorted out and allowed herself to finally breathe once she was settled in the carriage. She didn't even look back as they pulled away from the mansion. She wanted to be as far away from that place as humanly possible.

Once she returned to the castle, she immediately went up to her room and changed out of the tea dress. Nessa came in and wanted to know every single detail about the tea, which Elphaba promised she would tell her as soon as she took a nap. At that moment, Seyla came and told Elphaba that the king and queen requested her presence in the throne room.

When Elphaba got to the throne room, she found the king and queen sitting on their respective thrones, with her parents beside their respective bosses. They weren't smiling. In fact, they looked quite grim.

"You sent for me, Your Majesties?" Elphaba asked with a deep curtsy.

"Yes, Elphaba," the queen said, sounding like she was trying to hide the tightness in her voice. "We were hoping you could answer a question for us."

"I believe so," Elphaba said, feeling her heart beating in her throat.

"Elphaba," the king said, narrowing his eyes slightly. "Why have a pair of dirty riding breeches been found hidden in your room?"

* * *

 **CLIFFY! MWAHAHAHHA!**

 **Also, does anyone know where the names Cuthbert, Caradoc, and Lavinia (the queen's middle name) come from? Hint: It's from an old cartoon. Think about what time period this story takes place.**


	9. Chapter 8

**Guest: I can assure you that Elphaba will not allow anyone to walk all over her like a rug. She is much too strong for that. She just has to pick her battles. And in terms of Nessa, she is the family jewel, even if she isn't in a wheelchair in this story. She is still the "perfect daughter" and she would never really be "punished". If Elphaba had told on her, the most that would have happened would be that Nessa would have been forced to apologize.**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Of course Fiyero has a cunning scheme. But don't worry; he will get what's coming to him soon.**

 **Satilliteheart: Don't worry. We'll get our Fiyeraba!**

 **And yes, the names are from Jane and the Dragon. I used to LOVE that show! Shoutout to Wanli8970 and AirHawk19 for guessing correctly.**

 **Also, thank you to everyone who caught my typo in the last chapter. And yes, I do know the difference between "conceited" and "conceded". It was a typo that I missed in proofreading and the mistake is now fixed.**

* * *

Elphaba felt all of the air leave her body. She couldn't lie, but she couldn't possibly tell the truth. How did they even know about the breeches? Only Nessa knew about…

 _No._

Nessa couldn't have told. She promised she wouldn't. Why would she do something like that?

"Miss Elphaba, answer the question," the king said impatiently.

Elphaba looked from her mother to her father, then back to the monarchs. "I… I have been… using them, Your Majesties."

"For what purpose?"

"To…"

"Elphaba," Melena said sternly.

The green girl closed her eyes. "To learn how to fence."

Everyone gasped. Elphaba slowly opened her eyes to see all four adults glaring at her. If she was in hot water before, it was now boiling.

"Fencing?" the king asked.

"Yes, Your Majesty… and horseback riding."

Melena looked like she was about to faint. Frexspar stood as still as a statue, his eyes never leaving his daughter.

"And where did you get the breeches?"

"I… I don't know, Your Majesty."

"You don't know?"

Elphaba couldn't tell that Hann had gotten them for her. She couldn't let him get in trouble for something that she begged him to do.

"Elphaba, we are waiting for an answer," the queen said.

"I know!" a voice from the corner said.

Elphaba turned and saw Prince Fiyero approaching his parents. _When_ and _how_ did he get in there? Had he been standing there the whole time? And why did he know?

"It was Hann," Fiyero said, not even bothering to look at Elphaba.

"Squire Hann?" the king asked, surprised. "How do you know this, son?"

"I saw him take an extra pair of riding breeches from the loft. And he never put them back. Plus, my fencing sword has been missing."

Elphaba bit her lip. Hann would have never given her Fiyero's sword to use. This didn't make sense.

"Bring Squire Hann to us," the king said to the guards, who bowed and left the throne room.

Elphaba held her breath. She glanced at Fiyero and found him smirking at her. She bit back a frown. She had to think of a way for the prince to pay for this.

The throne room door opened and Hann walked in. "You sent for me, Your Majesties?"

"Squire Hann, have you been teaching Miss Elphaba knightly activities in secret?" the king asked.

Hann blinked and slowly glanced over at Elphaba as if to say, _'Are we lying?'_ , but Elphaba slowly shook her head. It was no use.

"I… I have, Your Majesties."

"And is there a reason the two of you chose to defy our traditions and rules?"

"I never intended to train to become a knight," Elphaba said. "I just… I wanted something different."

"Are you not grateful for your position in society?"

"I am very grateful, but I wanted to… have more adventure in my life."

"Here in the Vinkus, we have a set order," the king explained. "And if that order is upset, it could throw everything into chaos. We can't have a girl riding a horse and we can't have a young man doing needlepoint. It is simply not the way things are done."

Hann and Elphaba exchanged a nervous look.

"We had no intention of upsetting the balance, Your Majesty," Hann said softly.

"But you have. And now we must correct this before it becomes any worse. Squire Hann, you are relieved of your knighthood training. You will work in the stables from now on."

Hann looked shocked and absolutely crushed. "But –"

"Your Majesty," Elphaba tried, but the king held up his hand to silence her.

"You will be on laundry duty, Miss Elphaba," the king said, glancing at the green girl. "Until you have learned your place in society."

"Your Majesty, please –" Hann begged, but was cut off.

"This is not up for discussion. This is my word. It is final," the king said. "You are both dismissed."

A dejected Hann bowed and quickly left the throne room. Elphaba looked up at the king in the hope of trying to speak, but the king waved his hand at her to go. She looked at her parents who looked extremely disappointed. With a curtsy, she left the room and ran to find Hann.

"Hann!" she called when she saw him.

The ex-knight-in-training stopped, but then picked up his pace.

"Hann, wait!" Elphaba called again, but Hann didn't slow down.

Hann still continued to ignore her.

Elphaba finally caught up to him and gently grabbed his hand. The teenager immediately pulled away with a grunt.

"Hann, I'm so sorry," the green girl said, knowing it would be of little consolation. "Hann, speak to me. Please."

"I told you we would get caught," Hann said, finally turning around to look at the green girl. "I knew this wouldn't end well. And I've worked so hard on my training."

"I know you have."

"I wanted to make something of myself. I thought that… I thought that I would be able to make my parents proud by becoming more than they ever dreamed for me."

Elphaba bit her lip. "I…" There was nothing she could say to that.

"I feel like I'm disappointing them."

"You're not," Elphaba tried to convince him. "They would be so proud of you. You've accomplished so much."

"And it was all for nothing."

The green girl felt guiltier than ever. "This is all my fault."

"Yes," Hann said sourly, glaring at the green girl. "It is."

"I'll try to talk to the king again. I'll try to –"

"You've done enough." And with that, Hann marched down the corridor and out of sight.

Elphaba watched him go with tears in her eyes. She didn't mean to get her best friend in trouble. She just wanted… Well, now it didn't matter what she wanted. She had to find a way to make it up to Hann. There had to be some way.

"Oh, laundry maid!"

Elphaba froze and closed her eyes. Prince Fiyero was the last person she wanted to deal with right now.

"Laundry maid, do you not hear me speaking to you?"

The green girl slowly turned around and plastered a fake smile on her face as she curtsied. "Yes, Your Highness?"

"I have a riding lesson tomorrow and my riding uniform is still unclean. Don't you think you should be washing it instead of roaming through the castle?" Fiyero asked, slowly approaching the green girl like a predator hunting its prey.

"As much as I would _love_ to, Your Highness, I'm not on laundry duty until tomorrow," Elphaba said.

"I did not ask you when you started your duties. I told you that I want my uniform cleaned."

"And I shall personally forward your message to the laundry maids."

The prince's face grew red with anger and Elphaba had to fight to keep the smirk off her face. She didn't know why she was getting satisfaction out of angering the prince, especially knowing that making him mad would only make things worse for her.

"What's that?" he asked, looking at her necklace.

Elphaba placed her hand on the large crystal. "A gift."

"Who would waste a girl like that on a frog like you?"

"It's an engagement gift."

The prince paused briefly. "What blind man were you sold off to?"

"I was not _sold_ , Prince Fiyero. I am not cattle. And I am betrothed Lord Cuthbert Caradoc." Elphaba felt like throwing up during the latter part, the mere thought making her cringe.

Fiyero glared at her before reaching forward and snatching the necklace off her neck.

"Hey!" Elphaba frowned, her neck burning.

"Why would an upper-crust family want to add a lettuce leaf to their family?"

"Lettuce leaf?" Elphaba questioned incredulously. "I must admit, that is a new one. You are very creative. Bravo, Your Highness."

Fiyero reached back and cracked Elphaba hard across the face. The green girl fell to the ground with a yelp, covering her cheek. She pulled her hand away and when she didn't see blood, started chuckling. She slowly rose to her feet, genuinely not knowing why she was laughing after being slapped. Fiyero looked confused, wondering why the green girl was laughing instead of crying and begging for mercy.

"Feel better?" Elphaba asked in a low voice, still chuckling.

Fiyero looked shocked, then quickly switched to angry. He raised his hand to slap her again, but this time, Elphaba was ready. As his hand approached her face, she reached out and grabbed his wrist. She could have twisted his arm and really hurt him, but she didn't. She simply pushed it away so it wouldn't make contact with her cheek.

"Cease at once!" Fiyero growled.

"Prince or not, you have no right to slap me," Elphaba said softly, yet darkly. "You have no right to tease me and make fun of me." She took that opportunity to grab her necklace back. "I have had to deal with you being mean to me my whole life, and I refuse to tolerate it any longer."

"Release me!" the prince barked. "Guards!"

"Not until you swear to stop bullying me."

"I am the prince and I will do as I please! Guards!"

"Swear it!"

"No!" Fiyero managed to break free and grabbed Elphaba arm and twisted it behind her back. Elphaba cried out as the prince forced her to her knees. "Now, this is better, isn't it?"

Elphaba whimpered, struggling to get free. The necklace clattered to the ground, the crystal cracking.

"Now, listen, lima bean," Fiyero whispered. "You will not speak to me in such a disrespectful manner."

"You cannot just go through life treating people like rubbish," Elphaba grunted. "No one wants a friend like that."

"And you know so much about friends… seeing as you have _none_."

"I know that if you keep on pretending to be shallow and self-absorbed you pretend to be…"

"There is absolutely no pretense here. I happen to be genuinely self-absorbed and deeply shallow."

"No, you're not. Or else you wouldn't be so unhappy."

Fiyero froze and slowly relaxed his grip on Elphaba's arm. The green girl scrambled free and turned to look at the prince.

"You don't know the first thing about me or how I feel, spinach sprout," Fiyero frowned.

"No, I do not," Elphaba said as she grabbed her necklace and slowly rose to her feet. "I can't know. And honestly, I can't want to know. I'm not going to try and figure you out because I know it's not my place, but no matter how much to deny it, you are unhappy. And since you're unhappy, you try to make yourself happy by belittling others, namely me. I have tried to give you the benefit of the doubt our entire lives, but I see that no matter what, you are never going to change. So, continue insulting me if you wish. I have simply stopped caring. I hope you continue to have fun." Curtsying, she turned and walked away from the prince. Fiyero stood rooted to the spot, frozen.

"Prince Fiyero!" the guards said as they rushed towards him. "Are you alright?"

It took a moment for the prince to respond. "Yes," he said. "Yes. Everything is fine."

* * *

Elphaba grunted as she turned the dirty laundry in the barrel of hot water with a washing bat. She hated doing laundry, but knew she had to do this chore and lay low if she wanted to get back into the monarchs' good graces.

"Let me help you."

Elphaba turned and saw her sister standing behind her. With a frown, she turned back to the barrel. "I can do it myself."

"Fabala, I promise you that I didn't tell a soul your secret. I don't know how Prince Fiyero found out, but I didn't tell him."

"You are the only person I told. If you didn't tell him, who did?"

"I also told you that you weren't very good at hiding those breeches."

Elphaba was silent.

"Is Hann –"

"He is not speaking to me. He's furious with me, and he has every right to be." A drop of water splashed Elphaba and hit the back of her hand. With a gasp, she pulled her hand away and rubbed the small burn.

"Well… please don't be furious with me," Nessarose said, positioning herself to help her sister. She grabbed the washing board and dipped one of her father's shirts into the hot water and began scrubbing.

"Nessa?"

"Yes?"

"You swear you didn't tell anyone?"

"I swear it."

Elphaba nodded. "Okay."

"You believe me?"

"I believe that Prince Fiyero is very sneaky and would have found a way to find out."

"Have… the prince hasn't been very kind to you, has he, Fabala?"

Elphaba scoffed softly. "Is he kind to anyone?"

"True, he is rather…"

"Callous and heartless?"

"I was going to say mischievous."

"That is a kind way of putting it."

"Have you… told anyone?"

Elphaba looked at her sister. "He's the prince, Nessa. And right now, I am a scullery maid. Who would believe me?"

"Someone would have to. You can't be the only one he mistreats."

"You missed it. Recently, he came up with 'lettuce leaf'. I must say, that was a new one."

"He… calls you names?"

"Basically everything from 'frog' to almost every vegetable he doesn't eat."

"And it… doesn't bother you?"

"It used to, but now I've decided to stop caring. Maybe if I just feign disinterest, he'll stop."

"And you never thought to tell anyone… not even Mama or Father?"

"Even if I did tell, what could have been done?"

"They could have told the king and queen and they would have told the prince to stop. It's impolite for him to be insulting you or anyone else like that. Prince or not, he can't just go around doing whatever he wants."

"Honestly, out of all the things, that was the last thing I expected you to say," Elphaba said, glancing over at her sister with a soft smile.

"He needs to learn that he cannot just go around calling people names."

"He does more than just that," Elphaba said quietly before she could stop herself.

Nessa stopped scrubbing laundry and looked up at her sister. "What?"

"Nothing," Elphaba said quickly, turning the laundry faster than she intended.

"No, not nothing. What do you mean by that? Has the prince…" Nessa trailed off, answering her own question. "Has he been… physically hurting you?"

Elphaba didn't open her mouth.

"Elphaba, answer my question!"

"He's mostly stuck to name calling."

"But has he... hit you?"

"… Yes," Elphaba said very softly.

Nessa gasped, horrified.

"I admit, I might have angered him a bit, but –"

"But he should not be hitting you!" Nessa said.

"I thought you would have sided with the prince."

"Elphaba, I am your sister! I might be a bit more traditional and virtuous than you – and don't deny it – but I am still your sister."

"You… believe me?"

"Of course I believe you. Where did he hit you?"

"My cheek. I'm fine, though. It was only once."

Nessa quickly rose to her feet. "I'm going to tell Mama and Father."

"No!" Elphaba exclaimed, her eyes widening as she grabbed her sister's hand. "You can't!"

"Why not?"

"It will only make everything worse."

"And what if it makes him better? You want the prince to continue treating you like this?"

"Well, no, but –"

"Then we must put a stop to it!"

Elphaba could only watch as her sister ran to tell their parents what she had said. She realized that she had to keep the laundry turning or else the clothes would shrink, and the last thing she wanted was to get punished for something else she did wrong.


	10. Chapter 9

**Okay, everyone! Here is the "wake up call" chapter. At least… the first half of it. *Cackle***

* * *

Two weeks.

For two weeks, Elphaba was on laundry duty. For two weeks, Hann refused to speak to her. Every time he saw her, he would always turn the other way and ignore her. It hurt the green girl, but deep down, she knew she deserved it.

She also didn't see the prince. And it's not as though she went out of her way to find him. Nessa had told her that everything was "taken care of", and she had absolutely no idea what that meant. She hadn't received an apology or anything, but she didn't mind. The less she saw of the prince, the better.

Currently, Elphaba was practicing for her piano lesson. She had a break before she had to go help in the kitchen. She really didn't want to practice, but she needed a distraction.

"Elphaba."

The green girl turned around. "Yes, Mother?"

"Go get cleaned up. The Caradocs will be here soon."

Elphaba slowly stood. "They're coming?"

"Lord and Lady Cuthbert had business to discuss with the king and they are bringing Cuthbert."

Elphaba sighed.

"Elphaba!"

"I'm sorry," the green girl said softly.

Melena frowned, clearly still disappointed in her daughter. "Go get ready."

Elphaba nodded and walked past her mother.

"Elphaba."

The young girl froze and slowly turned. "Yes?"

"You… your piano lesson sounds wonderful."

Elphaba looked down slightly. "Thank you," she said before hurrying away to get changed.

A maid helped Elphaba into a black, cotton dress with long sleeves and a pleated skirt. She reached for the crystal necklace, but saw that it was cracked. "Miss Elphaba, what happened to your necklace?"

"Oh, it… um… I accidentally dropped it." Now, Elphaba knew she could have told the maid that the prince broke it, but she was still a bit wary of telling on him. She just didn't want to go around telling everyone everything he's done to her, or else people might think she might have a motive and isn't being truly honest.

"Do you still want to wear it?"

The green girl hesitated. If she wore it, the adults would ask why it was cracked. If she didn't, they would ask why she wasn't wearing it. Either way, questions that Elphaba didn't want to answer would be asked. "I'll wear it."

The maid nodded and helped her with the necklace. Soon after she was finished and the maid left, she heard the voices of her future family members and hurried down the stairs.

"Ah, Miss Elphaba," Lord Caradoc said when he saw the green girl.

"Hello, Lord Caradoc. Lady Caradoc," Elphaba said with a curtsy. "Hello, Master Cuthbert."

"Miss Elphaba," Cuthbert said politely, but didn't kiss her hand.

The adults were escorted to the throne room, leaving the two teenagers alone.

"Shall we go into the parlor?" Elphaba offered.

Cuthbert nodded and the two walked into the parlor. The two sat down on opposite sides of the sofa, not looking at or speaking to each other.

"So… how have you been?" Cuthbert asked, the question sounding foreign on his lips.

The green girl looked at the teenage boy. "I've been fine. How… how have you been?"

"Fine." Silence. "What happened to your necklace?"

"Oh." Elphaba touched the crystal. "It cracked. I'm sorry."

"Oh. We could… replace it if you want."

Elphaba wondered why Cuthbert was offering to replace her broken necklace… and why he started a conversation with her in the first place. "Oh… thank you."

Cuthbert nodded and they were both silent again.

"So… Miss Elphaba… what do you like to do?"

Elphaba realized how rehearsed the questions sounded, but supposed it was better than nothing… or hearing Cuthbert go on and on about himself. "I like to read, sometimes write, and playing the piano."

"You play the piano?" Cuthbert asked, actually sounding interested.

"I do. I hate to practice, though."

"I hate to practice my archery, but I love to go hunting."

Elphaba looked at Cuthbert and smiled. He smiled back and the two began to have a conversation. While it was still very tense and a bit awkward, Elphaba found herself not completely hating spending time with Cuthbert. In fact – and she would never admit this out loud – she was actually enjoying herself. The two were actually beginning to develop a mutual respect for each other. They would both have to eventually spend the rest of their lives together, so they supposed it wouldn't be the worst thing in Oz to try and get to know each other.

Finally, Lord and Lady Caradoc were finished with their business with the king and queen and it was time for them to return to their mansion.

"We hope to see you again soon, Miss Elphaba," Lady Caradoc said as a maid helped her with her cloak.

"I do as well, Lady Caradoc," Elphaba said with a curtsy.

"I trust we will see you at the Winter Solstice Festival next week?" Lord Caradoc asked.

"Yes, Lord Caradoc," Elphaba nodded with a slight smile.

"Goodbye, Miss Elphaba," Cuthbert said with a bow, this time kissing the back of Elphaba's hand.

"Goodbye, Master Cuthbert," she said, not being able to control her lips as the corners turned upward some more.

The Caradocs were escorted out to their carriage and Elphaba watched as they drove away. She sighed softly as she went to go get changed and resume her chores.

* * *

The next evening, Elphaba was quickly taking the clothes down from the drying line. The sky was clouded over with dark grey clouds and the rumble of thunder could be heard in the distance. The air was moist and thick, letting the green girl know that a storm wasn't very far away. Because of the humidity, the clothes weren't completely dry, but bringing them inside would be better than leaving them out in the thunderstorm. She had just finished when she heard a horse whinny. She looked up to see galloping towards the stables.

"Was that…?" Elphaba muttered to herself. After thinking it over, she abandoned the laundry and went to investigate.

As soon as she was close enough, her thoughts were confirmed. "Cleaver," the green girl whispered, slowly approaching the horse and grabbing its reigns. Cleaver was the prince's horse, and she had seen him go out for a ride earlier, but why would Cleaver return without Fiyero. Unless…

Elphaba brought Cleaver inside and ran to find Hann. She checked the tack room first, and was fortunate to find him in there polishing riding boots.

"The prince is in trouble," she told with without preamble.

The ex-knight looked up and frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Cleaver has returned, tacked up, and without Prince Fiyero."

Hann looked shocked. "We should alert the knights."

"No!" Elphaba said quickly.

"What?"

"By the time we tell the captain and they assemble together, who knows how much time would have gone by. Plus, it would throw the whole castle into chaos. We have to go ourselves."

"What?!" Hann gasped. "Elphaba, have you gone mad? We can't go out there looking for the prince by ourselves!"

"Why not?"

"Because it's not our place. Didn't we already have this discussion about our duties?"

"Do we not have a duty to protect the royal family?" Elphaba countered, narrowing her eyes slightly.

"I am no longer a knight," Hann pointed out, and Elphaba couldn't help but wince. "And you…"

"That doesn't mean anything. We have to stop wasting time. Now, call me crazy or not, but I'm going out to find him. The question now becomes… are you coming with me?"

Hann hesitated. "You're serious about this, aren't you?"

"Yes," Elphaba nodded.

The young teenager sighed. "I'll… I'll saddle a horse for you."

Elphaba realized what that meant and nodded. "I'll go get an emergency kit," she said as she hurried away. She returned ten minutes later with a kit with rubbing alcohol and bandages, along with a canteen of water and some meat and cheese wrapped in a bundle. Hann was waiting for her with a saddled horse.

"Elphaba," he said as lightning flashed in the distance.

Elphaba hummed and looked down at him as she mounted the horse.

"Just… please be careful."

The green girl smiled softly. "I will." She kicked the horse's sides and galloped away.

Hann watched her go, the little voice in his head telling him that he should have gone with her. The storm was getting closer and he knew she shouldn't be out there by herself.

"Hann!"

The young teenager turned and bowed. "Sir Davion."

"What are you doing out here, boy? You are supposed to be polishing boots!"

"I was, sir, but –"

"But?"

Hann looked down. "But nothing, sir."

Sir Davion frowned. "Get back to work."

"Yes, sir," Hann nodded and returned to the tack room.

Elphaba knew she wasn't very skilled at horseback riding, and she was regretting deciding to come alone. She really wished Hann was there with her, but understood why he had refused. He was probably finished with getting into trouble because of her.

She quickly rode through the nearby forest. It had started to heavy drizzle, and Elphaba knew she didn't have a lot of time before the downpour started. "Prince Fiyero!" she called.

Silence answered her. Sighing, Elphaba continued to ride through the forest. She had absolutely no idea where the prince was. He wouldn't have veered off the trail, but the forest wasn't very small. He could be anywhere.

The downpour started earlier than Elphaba expected and she was now soaking wet. She pulled her rain cloak tighter against her and sighed. Where was he?

"Prince Fiyero!" she shouted over the thunder. The horse reared and she had to hold onto its neck to avoid falling off.

"Over here!"

Elphaba turned in that direction. "Hyah!" she said and the horse galloped towards the voice. "Prince Fiyero!"

The prince was sitting on the ground, his left leg stretched out. He was under a tree, so he wasn't as wet as he would have been. He looked up in relief when he heard someone approaching, but his smile faltered when he saw Elphaba. "You."

Elphaba stopped and dismounted the horse. "Are you alright, Prince Fiyero?"

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be preparing some more stocking soup?"

Elphaba let that comment slide and approached the prince. "Normally, when a horse returns without its rider, it is implied that the person will be searched for."

The prince frowned. "Where are the knights? Should they be here?"

"I thought it would be quicker if I just came alone."

"You… came alone?"

"Again, it was quicker." She looked at the blood on the prince's leg and gasped softly. "May I?"

Fiyero glared at her.

"I promise you that you won't catch my green," Elphaba said, trying not to sound exasperated. "I can promise you, however, that you will catch an infection if that wound isn't cleaned."

"And… you're going to tend to it?"

"If you want me to get someone else, I will, but by the time I come back, you will be even more wet and cold than you already are."

The prince thought for a moment before nodding and Elphaba knelt next to him, taking out the rubbing alcohol and bandages. She realized that she didn't have a cloth to clean the wound and quickly tore off a piece of her dress.

"Are you hungry?" she asked poured the alcohol on the rag.

"A bit," the prince admitted.

Elphaba wordlessly handed him the bundle and the canteen and went back to cleaning his wound. Fiyero took the bundle and opened it, looking at the contents of the food taking a bite of the meat.

"The meat is cold," he complained.

"I'm sorry. I didn't have time to warm it," Elphaba said distractedly.

The prince scowled and didn't touch the rest of the food. He winced a few times as Elphaba gently cleaned the wound. "You're hurting me!"

"I apologize."

"Must you be so rough?"

"I am being as gentle as I can. It's better to have it hurt now than get sick later."

Fiyero watched as she finished cleaning the blood from his leg and wrapped the bandage around his leg and tying it tight. "Must you tie it so tight?"

"It's tight to stop the bleeding, Your Highness."

"Is anyone else coming?"

"I don't think so, Your Highness."

Fiyero sighed impatiently. "Are you finished yet?"

"Yes, I am," Elphaba said as she put the leftover bandages and rubbing alcohol away. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

"No."

"Can you stand?"

Fiyero hesitated. Elphaba offered him her hand, but he slapped it away and used the tree he was leaning against to push himself to his feet. "I'm fine now," he said, waving Elphaba away and taking a few steps. He soon realized that he couldn't put much weight on his left leg and stumbled. Elphaba reached out and gently grabbed his arm to steady him.

"Please let me help you, Your Highness," Elphaba said when Fiyero shot her a dirty look.

"Why are you even helping me?"

Elphaba couldn't take it anymore. "Fine. If you don't want my help, I'll leave." She let go of the prince's arm and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Fiyero called, and Elphaba turned around. "I… I don't want you to leave."

"You want me to stay out here in the rain so both of us can get sick?"

"No, I mean… I need your help."

Elphaba regarded the prince for a moment before going back over to the prince. She took off her rain cloak and wrapped it around him. He leaned heavily against her as they both walked back to the horse. Suddenly, the horse reared and both teenagers jumped back.

"Whoa, Pepper!" Elphaba said, letting go of Fiyero and stepping forward to try to get the horse to calm down. "Why are you so excited?"

A low growl from behind her caught her attention and she rolled her eyes. "Prince Fiyero, I know you are unhappy right now, but growling –"

"That wasn't me!" the prince interrupted indignantly.

Elphaba froze and slowly turned around. Her eyes widened and her entire body stiffened.

"What?" Fiyero asked as he turned around. "Oh, Oz. Just what we need right now."

All the two teenagers could do was stare at the beady eyes glowing back at them.

* * *

 **CLIFFY! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**


	11. Chapter 10

The creature slowly emerged from the shadows and both teenagers gasped. A wolf. Elphaba and Fiyero stood rooted to the spot, paralyzed with fear.

"What is a wolf doing out in the rain?" Elphaba whispered.

"Maybe its den is nearby," Fiyero suggested. "Or maybe it's… hungry."

"Do you still have the meat?"

"It's over there."

Elphaba looked in the direction Fiyero nodded in and saw the bundle. She moved to get it, but Fiyero pulled her back.

"Don't move. Any sudden movements will trigger it to fight."

"Then what do we do?"

"Move back slowly. And don't turn your back to it."

The two slowly backed away and moved to mount Pepper. The wolf growled and barked. Elphaba had to grab the reins to stop Pepper from running away.

"Don't look afraid," Fiyero whispered.

"That's kind of hard right now," Elphaba said as thunder rumbled. The rain lightened up a bit, but still showed no signs of stopping anytime soon.

"It will make it seem like we're prey. Don't look afraid. Try to relax."

Elphaba glanced over at the prince, but did as he said and tried to relax her tense muscles. "How do we get it to go away?"

The prince looked down and saw some rocks. Picking them up, he began to throw them at the wolf. Elphaba followed suit, but the wolf didn't seem fazed by the rocks. In fact, it seemed to just make it angrier.

Just then, they heard a loud noise. At first, they thought it was the thunder, but then made out the sound of pounding hooves against the ground and stopped throwing the rocks.

"It's the knights," Fiyero said.

"It only sounds like one horse," Elphaba said, shaking her head slightly.

"Elphaba! Prince Fiyero!"

Elphaba turned her head and saw Hann hurrying over to them. "Hann!" she exclaimed in relief.

Hann pulled up to them glanced at the wolf. "You and Prince Fiyero go, Elphaba. I'll take care of the wolf," he said as he dismounted and took out his sword.

"We can't leave you here, Hann," Elphaba said. "It's too dangerous."

"Elphaba," Hann said, glancing over his shoulder. "Please."

"Hann," Elphaba countered. " _Please_."

The wolf bared its teeth as it stared at Hann.

"Neither of you is armed and the prince is injured. You two have to get back to the castle," Hann said.

"But –"

"Go!"

Elphaba blinked, then quickly helped the prince onto Pepper and climbed in front of him. She and Hann exchanged one last look before she turned away. "Hold on," was all she said to the prince before taking off. Fiyero wrapped his arms around Elphaba's stomach, something that probably would have made the green girl very uncomfortable had she the time to really think about it as they rode off.

"We have to go back and help him," Fiyero said once they were out of the forest.

"Once we get back to the castle, we'll alert the knights… assuming they haven't been alerted already."

Fiyero was silent for a moment. "I suppose I should thank you."

Between the wind and the rain, Elphaba wouldn't have heard him, but because he was sitting right behind her, she did. At first, she thought she had misheard him. When did Prince Fiyero ever say 'thank you' for anything? "What?"

"Thank you, for coming out here. You… you really didn't have to do that."

"Oh. You're welcome."

Soon, the two were back at the castle, where the knights were preparing to leave. The captain turned when he heard horses and was surprised to see who it was. "Miss Elphaba?"

"Sir Davion," the green girl said with a slight nod.

"What are you do- Prince Fiyero!"

Elphaba dismounted and the prince, still wearing the green girl's rain cloak, was helped down. The captain immediately noticed his leg and ordered that the prince be immediately taken to his room. He was ushered inside and the captain turned to look at Elphaba.

"Your parents have been very worried sick over you, Miss Elphaba. They are expecting you in the parlor."

Elphaba nodded and hurried inside. She was already soaking wet and wondered if she had time to dry off. As soon as she entered the castle, a maid noticed her and immediately informed her family. Elphaba went into the parlor and before she could process anything, she felt round wrapped tightly around her.

"Oh, Fabala! Thank goodness you're safe!" Melena exclaimed, relief evident in her voice.

Elphaba felt her father and sister wrap their arms around her. She relaxed slightly, deciding to relish this brief moment of peace before she was scolded.

"What were you thinking?" Melena asked when she pulled away, tears in her eyes. "Going out like that! In a storm, no less! All alone!"

"I…" Elphaba whispered. "I'm sorry."

Melena just shook her head and hugged her daughter again.

"Why?" Nessarose asked gently.

"I saw Cleaver come back here without the prince and I… I don't know what happened," the green girl confessed. "I asked Hann to come with me but he didn't and –"

"Hann let you go by yourself?" Frexspar asked.

"But he found us later and held off the wolf so Prince Fiyero and I could get away."

"Wolf? What wolf?" Melena gasped.

"I found the prince wish an injured leg and cleaned and wrapped it up. Then a wolf appeared, but Hann came and helped us escape."

"Were you scared?" Nessarose asked.

"Are you hurt?" Melena questioned, gently gripping her daughter's arms.

"A little, and no," Elphaba answered. "I'm just tired… and wet."

"We will discuss this later," Melena said as she rose to her feet. "Change out of those wet clothes and come warm up by the fire."

"You weren't wearing a rain cloak?" Frexspar asked.

"I was, but I gave it to the prince because he wasn't wearing one."

Elphaba went upstairs to change. She took off the wet dress and slipped into a nightgown and warm rob. When she came back, her parents were gone, but Nessarose was still in the parlor. She was sitting in front of the fire and when she noticed her sister, patted the space next to her. Elphaba sat down and the younger girl immediately went to work on finger-detangling her hair.

"Elphaba," Nessarose began.

"Nessie, if you're going to scold me, could it please wait until tomorrow. I don't feel very well."

"Do you feel sick?"

"No. Just exhausted."

"You ride astride a horse and you expect not to be tired."

"Was I expected to ride side-saddle?"

"You weren't expected to go out there at all."

Elphaba sighed.

"Why did you go out there? Why didn't you just let the knights rescue the prince?"

Elphaba thought for a moment. Why did she go after the prince? He was the last person she ever expected to care enough for to rescue. "I… I don't know. Maybe I thought that if I showed him some kindness, he would do the same. Not just to me, but to everyone in the castle."

"That's very wishful thinking."

"I know, but it was worth a try."

Nessarose giggled softly and braided her sister's hair.

"Where did Mother and Father go?"

"They went to inform the king and queen that you've returned."

"Hann is still out there."

"The knights will find him."

"But what if he's hurt? What if the wolf –"

"Fabala," Nessarose said, placing her hands on her sister's shoulders. "Hann will be fine. He's a knight."

Elphaba looked away and the younger girl quickly realized her mistake.

"I mean… he's had extensive training and he knows what he's doing. He'll be fine."

"I know," the green girl said with a soft sigh. "I'm going to bed now. Goodnight, Nessa."

"Goodnight, Fabala."

The green girl dragged herself up the stairs to her room. She closed the door behind her and slowly walked over to her bed. She took off her robe and unceremoniously dropped it on the floor before climbing under the covers. She was tired, but she couldn't go to sleep. Her brain was much to awake. She couldn't stop thinking about Hann and the multiple scenarios that could have happened to him, each outcome worse than the previous one. What felt like hours, later, Elphaba finally fell asleep, but was haunted by lucid nightmares of Hann getting hurt and him blaming her for everything.

* * *

Melena clicked her tongue as she felt her daughter's forehead with the back of her hand. "She has a fever," she announced to her husband. "Riding in the storm probably did this to her."

Frexspar slowly shook his head. "What will we do?"

"I will send for the royal doctor. Their Majesties will probably want him to make sure the prince isn't sick, as well."

Frexspar nodded and the two went to inform the king and queen. Once she was sure they were gone, Nessarose appeared from behind the corner and snuck into her sister's room. The green girl was in bed, fast asleep, with tiny beads of sweat covering her forehead. She was buried underneath layers of blankets, making it very hard for her to move. With a moan, she slowly opened her eyes and looked up at her sister. "N-Nessa?"

"Hi," the younger girl said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Hot." Elphaba tried to move, but the blankets prevented her from doing so.

"You have a fever."

Elphaba closed her eyes and moaned.

"If it makes you feel any better, Hann is okay."

A bit of color seemed to return to Elphaba's face when she heard that and reopened her eyes. "He is?"

Nessarose nodded. "He has some scratches and the wolf bit his leg, but other than that, he's fine."

"The wolf bit his leg?"

"Yes. He has some wolf teeth marks in his skin, which will probably result in a scar."

"At least he's… okay."

"He'll be fine."

"And… the prince?"

Nessarose faltered. "He'll live. The only reason he's not sick is because you gave him your rain cloak and that prevented him from getting as wet as you."

"His leg…?"

"It was more superficial than damaging. Just a bleeding cut and a slight bruise. It probably would have been worse if you didn't tend to it." Nessa paused briefly before continuing. "Even I don't completely condone you going off into the night alone the way you did, I'm… I'm proud of you, Fabala."

"Thanks."

"I really mean it. It was a very fool-hearted thing to do, but also… very brave."

The green girl smiled slightly. Nessarose smiled back and the door opened, revealing Melena.

"Fabala, you're awake," Melena said as she hurried to her daughter's side. She felt her forehead and frowned. "Still feverish."

"Mother…"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"I… I have to go to the privy," the green girl said with a cough.

The lady's maid smiled and helped her daughter out of bed. As soon as Elphaba's bare feet touched the floor, she felt the coldness shoot up her spine and the room began to spin.

"I'm fine," she said when her mother tried to help her walk.

"Of course, dear," Melena said, probably deciding to ignore what Elphaba meant.

For the rest of the day, Elphaba was confined to her bed. Her mother and sister made sure she had plenty of books to keep her busy. Before the doctor had left that morning, he gave Melena a bottle of a dark purple liquid with instructions to give Elphaba a spoonful every hour for two days. The medicine tasted like sour, stale grape juice and Elphaba absolutely hated it. The only good thing that came from her sickness was that she was excused from her punishment... until she was better.

Later that afternoon, as she was waking up from a nap, she heard a knock at the door.

"Enter," she said as she pushed herself, silently thanking her mother for removing some of the across blankets.

The door open and Elphaba didn't even bother to try and hide her surprise. "Prince Fiyero."

"Miss Elphaba," Fiyero nodded and Elphaba realized that this was the first time Fiyero ever called her by her actual name. "May I… come in?"

"Yes," Elphaba said, but only because she couldn't say no.

The prince slipped inside and closed the door behind him. "I… I heard you weren't feeling well."

"I'm fine," Elphaba said, then sneezed twice. She expected the prince to run out in disgust, but instead, he wordlessly handed her a handkerchief. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Elphaba hesitated for a moment before asking, "Is your leg feeling better?"

"Yes. It's still sore, but better than yesterday. And I… I just wanted to say thank you again… for yesterday."

"Oh. You're welcome."

"And I also came to… apologize."

Elphaba looked at the prince. He sounded like he was really being sincere. He didn't sound like he was being forced to apologize. Then again, if someone really did send him, he could just lie and say he did. But he was actually doing it. And Fiyero never apologized for anything before.

"I'm sorry for everything I've done to you. I know there's no excuse for my actions so I'm not going to try to make up one. You were right."

"Right about what?" Elphaba questioned and coughed into the handkerchief, still trying to process the fact that the prince was actually apologizing to her.

"Right about –"

The door opened and Fiyero stopped short. "Fabala, I brought you some more soup. I thought that you would – Oh. Hello, Your Highness," Nessarose said with a curtsy when she saw the prince.

"Miss Nessarose," Fiyero nodded. He looked at Elphaba and gave her a slight nod before hurrying out of the room.

"Fabala, are you alright?" the brunette asked, hurrying inside and placing the bowl of soup on the nightstand. "What did the prince say to you?"

"He was… apologizing to me," Elphaba said, slightly dazed. "He thanked me for yesterday, and then he apologized to me."

"For what?"

"For everything. Then he said that I was right, but he didn't tell me what I was right about. He was… nice, and he sounded sincere."

"You don't think…"

"What?"

"You don't think he's trying to… become friends with you?"

Elphaba scoffed. "I think he rehearsed what he was going to say before actually coming up here. Moreover, I'm probably the _last_ person he would ever want to be friends with. Plus, it's going to take a lot more than one apology to make up for a lifetime of torment."

Nessarose gave her sister a sympathetic look before leaving her with the soup and saying she would come back after her voice lesson. The green girl was left alone to ponder what had just happened between her and Prince Fiyero.

* * *

 **Yes, it will take much more time, apologies, and kind actions before Elphaba even begins to trust Fiyero, much less befriend him. But we will get our Fiyeraba! Eventually, but we'll get it!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Ravencurls: I have a Fiyeraba "Pride and Prejudice" in the works, but not for a while. I love that book!**

 **Wanli8970: No, I've grown attached to Hann, so killing him wasn't an option… for now.**

 **Satilliteheart: I have it planned out, but not fully written yet, so I'm not sure about the epilogue.**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Give it some time. We'll get our Fiyeraba.**

* * *

Elphaba was in her bed, reading. She was feeling a bit better, but her mother said she still wasn't well enough to get out of bed. She sighed as she turned the page. She had read that particular book multiple times, so she wasn't really reading it. She was mostly just skimming and turning the pages.

"Enter," she called when someone knocked on her door.

The door opened and the green girl looked up, surprised to see Hann. "Hi, Hann."

"Hi," Hann said. "May I come in?"

"Of course."

The teenager tentatively walked into the room and pulled up a chair next to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Elphaba said after a brief coughing fit. "It sounds worse than it is," she added when she saw the look Hann was giving her.

"Oh."

"Did you want to talk to me about something?"

"Yeah. I… I wanted to… apologize."

Elphaba blinked. "Apologize? What for?"

"For… ignoring you."

"It's okay. I deserved it."

"No. I accepted the risks when I agreed to teach you. I shouldn't have acted like it was completely your fault. There's blame to share."

The green girl smiled softly. "So, we're friends again?"

"Of course we are," Hann smiled back.

The two continued to talk for a bit. For a moment, it was just like old times. They laughed and joked, and they both failed to hide their giggles when a maid came in with Elphaba's lunch and gave them both weird looks.

"I should probably get back to the stables," Hann said as he stood.

Elphaba nodded. "See you later."

"Bye."

The teenager gave Elphaba a quick wave before slipping out of the room and closing the door behind her. Elphaba leaned back in bed, sighing as she closed her eyes. She was about to fall asleep when she started coughing. She sat up and drank a few sips of the water on her nightstand and took a few deep breaths. She pushed the covers away from her body and slowly slid out of bed. The green girl closed her eyes against the sight of the room spinning and slowly slipped into her slippers. She slid one foot in front of the other, trying not to lose her balance. She was still slightly feverish, which would explain the spinning room and the fact that she felt like she was walking on a wave.

She managed to make it to the door and she slipped out, making her way to the apartment privy. After doing what she needed to do, she washed her hands and splashed some water on her face. When she came out after fixing her braid, she saw her sister walking down the hall.

"Fabala!" Nessa called when she caught sight of her sister. "There you are."

"Here I am," Elphaba said half-heartedly.

"What are you doing up?"

"Practicing my waltz."

Nessa gave her sister a pointed look, but quickly relaxed. "Are you feeling better?"

"Not especially."

"You should go back to bed and rest some more."

"I've done nothing but rest," the green girl said, pulling away when her sister tried to take her hand. "I'm tired of resting."

"You're still not well enough to be walking around the castle."

"I'm fine, Nessa. I need some fresh air." She strolled past her sister, hoping she didn't look as sick as she felt.

When Elphaba stepped outside, she had to admit that she felt a little bit better. She knew she probably shouldn't even be out there, but she had to escape her stuffy room. She hated feeling weak and constricted, so she took advantage of the opportunity to get some fresh air before Nessa went to tell their mother and she would be dragged back to bed.

It was the second week of December, and even though it wasn't as cold as it could have been, it was still cold enough for Elphaba to realize that she should have at least put on a cloak. Her wool nightgown was warm, but she knew she shouldn't spend more than a few minutes outside. The sun's light provided some extra warmth, along with the slight fever.

She sat down on a step and inhaled deeply a few times. She sensed that it would start snowing soon. She hoped it would. There was nothing like a snowy Lurlinemas.

Elphaba sat outside for a few minutes more before deciding to go back inside before people began to look for her. She slowly pushed herself to her feet and went back inside. She managed to make it back to her room without being confronted by anyone.

"Fabala, there you are," Melena said when she entered the room a few minutes later. "I came in here and you were missing. Where were you?"

"I… I needed some fresh air," Elphaba said, watching as her mother placed a cup of tea on the nightstand.

"You went outside," Melena clarified.

"Yes."

The older woman sighed, but didn't say anything else on the matter. "How are you feeling?"

"Better."

Melena nodded checked her daughter's temperature before leaving her with the tea.

The next day, Elphaba was feeling much better. Her fever had broken and she felt stronger. After breakfast, she went to help out in the kitchen for a bit before picking up the laundry.

"Elphaba!"

Elphaba turned and saw her sister. "Yes, Nessie?"

"The king and queen request your presence in the throne room." She took the laundry basket from her sister. "Go!"

Elphaba nodded and hurried away to the throne room. When she entered, the king and queen were sitting on their thrones. Hann was there to, and he turned around and gave her a soft smile.

"Your Majesties," Elphaba said with a curtsy.

"Master Hann, Miss Elphaba," the king began. "The queen and I have called you here because of what happened three days ago."

Elphaba stiffened.

"We would like to thank you both for saving the prince," the queen said with a soft smile. "Miss Elphaba, it was very brave of you to go out searching for Fiyero when you realized he was missing and tending to his injuries. It was a bit unorthodox, but still very brave."

"Of course, Your Majesty," Elphaba said with a nod.

"And Master Hann, we have heard the story of how you fought off the wolf that tried to attack both the prince and Miss Elphaba. Thank you," the king added.

Hann nodded.

"So, to reward you both, we would relieve you both of your punishments. Master Hann, we would be very honored and gracious if you would resume your knight's training," the king said.

The teenager look completely overjoyed at the king's words. "I would be honored, Your Majesty," he said formally with a bow, but it was still very clear that he was very excited.

"And Miss Elphaba, you are relieved of your extra chores," the queen said.

"Thank you, Your Majesties," the green girl said with a curtsy and a big smile.

"Excellent," the king said with a smile as he dismissed the two. "Now everything will go back to the way it was."

The teenagers left the throne room, both of them smiling gleefully. "I honestly was not expecting that," Hann said softly.

"Neither was I," Elphaba agreed. "What do you think caused their change of heart?"

"We rescued the prince."

"Do you think…"

"What?"

"Do you think that Prince Fiyero had a role in this?"

"I suppose. I mean, it's hard to tell with him. He's been acting very differently lately and I don't know what to make of it. Have you noticed that, too?"

"I have. He recently came to apologize to me for treating me like rubbish my entire life."

"And you forgave him?"

"I honestly don't know. I mean, I have to be nice to him because I don't have another choice, but… he's been rude to me for so long, I can't just forgive him that quickly."

"I understand."

The two walked together for a bit before parting ways. Elphaba went back up to her room and decided to read a bit until lunch. She couldn't concentrate on the book, however, since her thoughts were consumed by the prince.

* * *

Nessarose was the first person up the day of the winter solstice festival. And as per tradition, she made sure that the entire Thropp apartment was awake with her.

"Fabala, wake up!" the younger Thropp exclaimed as she hopped onto her sister's bed and began jumping up and down.

"Nessa, stop jumping on my bed," Elphaba groaned, her voice slurred with sleep.

"I will once you wake up. Today is the winter solstice festival! Come on! Come on! Wake up!"

Elphaba groaned and slowly opened her eyes. Not to her surprise, her sister was already dressed and ready to go. Grumbling under her breath, she slowly pushed herself up and yawned. "Nessa, you act as though the festival will start without us."

"We still cannot be late!"

"Nessa, we arrive with the king and queen, who start the festival. No matter what time we get there, we won't be late."

Nessarose frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. "Get up."

The green girl slid out of bed and stretched. "Did it snow last night?"

"No, and I'm getting worried. What if it still hasn't snowed by Lurlinemas?"

"I'm sure it will," Elphaba said as she picked out a warm dress to wear. She quickly washed and got herself ready. After putting on her thick stockings and wool slip, she slipped the dress over her head and smoothed out the skirt. The soft material felt wonderful against her skin and she relished the feeling a bit more before going downstairs for breakfast.

After eating, Melena and Frexspar went to attend to the king and queen, leaving Elphaba and Nessarose on their own. The two girls went to get their cloaks and soon, the castle was off to the festival. Once they got there, the monarchs said their customary speech and the festival began. The girls took notice of the prince, and when the saw him approaching them, pretended they didn't see him and went away to see the activities. Elphaba felt a bit bad for ditching the prince like that, but really didn't want to face him at the moment. She was here to have fun, and she didn't want anything spoiling it for her.

The girls played some games and won a few prizes. Nessarose won a new fancy doll in the ring toss and Elphaba won a beautiful fountain pen in the sack toss. The two girls looked like they were having a wonderful time together. They saw the prince a few times, and he was always beside his parents, looking like he wasn't having fun.

"The prince doesn't look like he's having fun," Nessarose commented as they sipped mugs of hot chocolate.

Elphaba was silent.

"Maybe we should invite him to come with us."

"No," the green girl said into her cup.

"Why not?"

"Because I still do not trust him."

"But you said that he apologized."

"That doesn't mean I trust him. I'd rather limit my interactions with him to as little as humanly possible."

"That's not right, Fabala. Prince or not, he still looks lonely."

"If you want to go with him, you are welcome to. But if you do, I will continue enjoying the festival on my own."

Nessarose bit her lip. She wanted to include the prince, but she also wanted to have fun with her sister. "Okay, Fabala. I'll stay with you."

Elphaba nodded and once the girls finished their drinks, they continued to walk around until it was time for Nessa to get ready for the singing competition. Elphaba was left alone, and she had to admit, she didn't really like it. She was glad her sister didn't leave her alone before. She saw a group of five village girls around her age walking together and decided to ask to join them.

"Hello," she said, approaching them.

The girls turned and immediately recognized her. "Lady Elphaba," they curtsied.

Elphaba bit back a scowl. She hated being called by her official title. She was rarely addressed by it because she was always in the castle, surrounded by people of a higher title than her. Even the maids didn't address her as "Lady Elphaba", since she technically didn't inherit the title until she turned sixteen. "Please, that's not necessary," she said waving it off. "I was wondering if I might join you."

"Of course," one of the girls instantly agreed and Elphaba smiled as she went with them.

The six girls had lots of fun walking around together. Yeshwa, Atya, Gaile, Cherry, and Willha immediately welcomed Elphaba into their group for the day. The green girl loved feeling like she was a part of the group, even if it was just for the day.

"My sister is performing in the singing competition in a few minutes," Elphaba said. "Could we go watch her?"

"Of course, La- Elphaba," Willha agreed and the girls made their way to the stage.

They sat in the fifth row and eagerly talked about what they were expecting. Elphaba caught sight of the prince again, still with his parents. She pretended not to notice him looking at her, a longing expression on his face. She tried to push down the feeling of guilt, telling herself that she didn't care. She didn't want to be with the prince, especially now that she was part of a new group of friends.

The competition went very well. All of the contestants were extremely talented. Nessarose won third place, and even though she was upset about not winning, she still accepted the small trophy and compliments with grace.

"Did you girls enjoy the festival?" Frexspar asked when they returned to the castle.

"I had a wonderful time," Nessarose grinned.

"You were wonderful, darling," Melena smiled, kissing her daughter's forehead. "Fabala?"

"I had fun, too," Elphaba admitted softly, having just woken up from her nap during the carriage ride home.

"I'm glad, Fabala. And I saw you've made some new friends, too," Frexspar smiled.

"I did, Father," Elphaba nodded and both girls went to take a nap before dinner.

"You know, I don't believe Prince Fiyero had fun at the festival," Frexspar admitted.

"The king and queen wouldn't allow him to go off on his own. He could have had so much fun playing the games," Melena said, giving her cloak to a maid.

"He could have gone with Elphaba and Nessarose. The three of them would have had a wonderful time together."

"I agree."

Unbeknownst to them, Elphaba had heard their conversation, and it just made her feel even guiltier than before.


	13. Chapter 12

**Wanli8970: No. Hann is 15, Fiyero is 14, Elphaba is 13, and Nessa is 11. Knight squires started their training young, around 10-13 in the medieval times. And yes, I do know who you are referring to.**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: I must confess, I didn't get the reference you made. *Hangs head in shame*. And don't worry; we still have a long way to go before Fiyeraba feelings begin to develop.**

* * *

"You were right."

Elphaba jumped, almost stabbing herself with her sewing needle and whipped around. She bit back a frown, seeing the prince. "Right about what, Your Highness?" Of course, she knew what the prince was talking about, but he was clearly struggling with himself, and why shouldn't she relish in it a bit?

"I'm… I'm not happy. I have been rude to you because I thought that making people seem beneath me would make me feel happier and… it hasn't."

Was this another apology? The green girl wasn't sure. "Yes…?"

"Again, I know that this does not excuse my behavior, but –"

"Excuse me, Your Highness, but I… I must prepare for my piano lesson now," Elphaba interrupted with a curtsy as she hurried away. She really didn't have to prepare for her piano lesson; she just really wanted to get away from the prince.

"Why?"

The prince's voice stopped her when she reached the door and she slowly turned around. "Why what?"

"Why did you come out there… to rescue me?"

Elphaba blinked.

"After everything I did to you, there has to be a reason why you would risk your life to come find me."

"I…" The green girl faltered. She didn't know what came over her to make sure the prince was alright. She couldn't give him an answer. "I do not know."

"You don't know?"

"Why did you go out knowing that a storm was coming?"

It was Fiyero's turn to be silent.

Elphaba took a moment to think before she answered her own question. "You wanted attention."

He looked at her.

"You thought that if you ran away, other people would realize how unhappy you were. Is that what you wanted?"

"Yes," the prince said after a long pause. "I… I'm tired of people only caring about me because I'm the only heir to the throne. I… I want more than that."

"What do you want?" Elphaba asked softly, no longer feeling the urge to leave the room.

"I don't know," the prince admitted quietly. "I just… don't know."

The two were silent for a while. "Excuse me," Elphaba finally said with a curtsy as she bolted away.

She hurried up back to her room and closed the door behind her. She knew she shouldn't have run away from the prince like that, but she really didn't want to talk to him.

 _Does he really want a clean slate?_ she wondered, curling her fingers around the fabric of her skirt. _Do I really want to give him one?_ She sat down on her bed as she continued to silently ponder those questions. She knew she couldn't stay mad at the prince forever, but she wasn't exactly ready to forgive him yet.

* * *

Lurlinemas was always the most festive holiday in the castle. Everything was decorated in garlands and candy canes and beautiful ornaments and decorations. On Lurlinemas Eve, the castle was at its busiest. Maids and servants hurried about setting up and decorating the large tree in the parlor.

Elphaba and Nessarose sat in front of the fire, eating candy canes and sipping hot chocolate. The two girls simply relaxing, enjoying each other's company.

"Do you think Mama and Father got me that new tea set I wanted?" Nessarose asked excitedly.

"Only if I got a new paint set," Elphaba chuckled.

The two girls were completely unaware of the prince watching them from around the corner. He watched them silently as they laughed and talked together. Why couldn't he have a relationship with someone like that? He wanted to be able to talk and laugh with someone, too.

He slowly walked into the parlor and cleared his throat. Both girls looked up and Fiyero tried to ignore the frown he saw quickly cross over Elphaba's face. "Hi," he said softly.

"Hello, Your Highness," Nessarose said softly.

The prince noticed how both girls seemed uncomfortable with his presence. He knew he should probably leave them alone, but he was just so lonely and really wanted some company. "May I… join you?"

The younger Thropp looked at her sister. Elphaba was staring into her empty mug, probably thinking that if she just stared at it, the prince would go away… and it would also magically make more hot chocolate appear without her having to get up.

"Sure," Nessarose said when her sister didn't give her a response.

Fiyero smiled softly as he sat down next to her. Elphaba glanced up at her sister, giving her a _'That wasn't the correct answer.'_ look, which Nessarose matched with a _'Well, you didn't give me an answer.'_ look.

The girls grew quiet once the prince joined them. Fiyero quickly realized that he had absolutely no idea on how to start a friendly conversation. "So… are you excited for Lurlinemas?" _Great question, Fiyero!_ he chided himself.

"Yes," Nessarose said softly, then looked at her sister. "Fabala?"

"Yes?" Elphaba asked, not looking at her sister.

"Are you excited for Lurlinemas?"

"Yes."

It was clear that neither girl was going to elaborate and the prince sighed as he got up and walked away.

"We could have been nicer to the prince," Nessarose admitted, looking at her sister. "He just wanted to talk to us."

"I suppose."

"Fabala, how long will you have this grudge against the prince?"

The green girl shrugged.

"You can't be like this forever. Sooner or later, you'll have to forgive him and move on."

"I choose later. Much later."

"That's not what I meant."

"That's what you said."

"You _knew_ what I meant."

"Did I?"

"You don't want to move on? You want to stay mad at him forever and ever and never let go of that anger?"

"It's not about letting go, Nessa. And I'm not angry with him. I just don't have a desire to associate myself with him other than when completely necessary."

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Why don't you give him one more chance?"

"Why should I? To give him more time to think of new insulting names for me?"

"When was the last time he called you a name, Fabala?"

Elphaba looked at her sister as if to say, _'Do you really want me to answer that?'_.

"Don't you think it's wrong to stay mad at Prince Fiyero?"

"When am I ever wrong?"

"Ha! If I only had the time!"

"Well, he needs to learn that he needs to earn people's forgiveness."

"And how will he earn yours?"

"I…" Elphaba hesitated. "I haven't decided yet."

"And that's why you're not speaking to him?"

"Nessa, if you want to spend time with the prince, be my guest. I'm not going to try and stop you."

"I just want to find out why you don't want to –"

"Instead of trying to figure me out, why don't you find the prince and talk to him… since you clearly want to do that so much."

The younger girl gave her sister a look and stood up. She walked out of the parlor without looking back. The green girl felt bad for speaking to her sister the way she did, but she stood by what she said. She didn't want to forgive the prince, but she knew that she would have to eventually. She was really at war with herself and didn't know where to go.

She didn't have much time to ponder it, because soon, her mother came to tell her to freshen up.

"Prince Elric and Princess Rohesia will be here shortly," Melena said, referring to the queen's younger brother and his wife. "And Princess Galinda will be here, too."

Elphaba nodded and went upstairs to her room. She changed into a blue-violet gown and pulled her hair back into a neat braid. By the time she was finished and returned downstairs, she heard a carriage pulling up. Soon, the royals were announced and the doors opened.

"Elric, it's wonderful to see you again," Amalie said as she hugged her brother.

"You as well, Amalie," Elric smiled, clearly glad to see his older sister again.

"Hello, Princess Galinda," Elphaba smiled to the blonde as she and Nessarose curtsied in unison.

"It's wonderful to see both of you again," the princess smiled, hugging both of them and went into an excited Lurlinemas rant as everyone went into the parlor.

The blonde had immediately busied herself with undoing Elphaba's braid and running her fingers through it. She then declared that the green girl looked even prettier with her hair down, and Elphaba was about to make a comment that she wasn't even pretty with her hair up, but decided against it. She stole a quick glance at the prince, who looked extremely bored as he stared at his empty plate.

Later that evening, the green girl managed to escape the princess' clutches and wandered through the halls. Galinda wanted to have a tea party, but Elphaba really didn't feel in the mood for having the princess make her try on several different dresses, hats, and accessories. Thankfully, Nessarose had volunteered to participate and Galinda was too busy talking to her to notice the green girl slip away. She was sure that the princess would have sent people looking for her, so she decided to enjoy every single clock-tick of peace she had.

She walked past the library and stopped, hearing humming inside. Curious, she slipped through the ajar door and noticed the prince sitting on the floor, playing chess by himself. He looked uninterested in the game and looked like he was simply moving the pieces around the board.

"Prince Fiyero," Elphaba said softly.

The prince turned around.

"I… didn't know you could play chess with one person."

The prince shrugged and turned back to the board.

"Would you… mind if I join you?"

"You… you want to?" Fiyero asked, slowly turning back around.

Elphaba hesitated, then nodded. Fiyero's lips twitched as he began to reset the chessboard and the green girl sat across from him. The two began to move their pieces in silence, neither of them knowing how to start the conversation.

As they neared the end of the game, Fiyero left with his king, queen, knight, both rooks and a bishop, while Elphaba had her king, queen, both bishops, and two pawns, a servant came into the library.

"Pardon me, Your Highness," he said as he bowed then turned to Elphaba. "Princess Galinda is requesting your presence in her room, Miss Elphaba."

"Oh. Okay, thank you," Elphaba said as she slowly stood and curtsied to the prince. "We can… finish our game later, Prince Fiyero."

Fiyero could tell that Elphaba really didn't want to go. They had both been enjoying their game and Fiyero really didn't want to be left alone again. "Wait!" he said when Elphaba and the servant reached the door.

Both of them turned around.

"Please tell Galinda that Elphaba is playing a chess game with me and cannot come at the moment."

Elphaba looked at the prince with an expression of shock, confusion, and something he couldn't quite identify.

"Very well, Your Highness," the servant said as he bowed and hurried out of the room.

The two teenagers stared at each other for a while before Fiyero went back to the board game. Elphaba joined him after a clock-tick and they resumed. Elphaba quickly won the game and smiled softly. "That was… very enjoyable," she said softly.

"Yes. It was," Fiyero agreed as he cleared the board. "You can… go to Galinda if you want."

"We could… play again."

"You want to play with me again?"

"Yes, please," Elphaba said with a slight nod. "This is much more enjoyable than being stuffed into a frilly, pink cupcake dress."

For the first time, Elphaba saw the prince give her a real, genuine smile. Not a smirk, but a smile. She could tell that she really made him happy as he set up the pieces.

 _I can't believe how quickly you forgave him!_ a voice in her head scolded her. _After everything he did to you!_

 _I didn't forgive him,_ Elphaba argued. _I was just playing a friendly game with him._

 _A_ friendly _game? When did you become friends with him?_

 _I didn't. He just looked so lonely and…_

 _Need I remind you of that one time he put Nessa in harm's way just to get you into trouble?_

Elphaba bit back a quiver as she remembered having to get her sister out of the dungeons. _No, I don't need to be reminded. I remember._

 _You can't befriend him. He can't be trusted._

 _We're not friends. If anything, I played with him out of pity. Even that was better than having to play dress-up with Princess Galinda._

 _Yes. Keep telling yourself that._

"Elphaba," the prince said, crashing into Elphaba's thoughts and dispersing them. "It's your turn."

"Oh. I'm sorry," Elphaba mumbled as she moved her king's pawn forward two spaces.

Before they knew it, they had played three more games; Elphaba won one and Fiyero won the other two. A maid came to collect them for dinner just as they started the fourth.

"Thank you, Elphaba," the prince said sincerely as they walked to the dining hall.

"Of course, Your Highness. I… had fun."

"I did, too."

During dinner, Elphaba couldn't help but think about the evening she had spent with the prince. Was she really beginning to like him? Was she starting to become friends with him? Did she even _want_ to be friends with him?

 _I'm_ not _friends with Prince Fiyero!_

 _Yes. Of course. Keep telling yourself that._

* * *

 **So, how do we feel about Elphaba starting to lighten up with Fiyero? It's the start of our Fiyeraba.**


	14. Chapter 13

**Today is October 30** **th** **, which means it is Wicked Day! Happy Wicked Day everyone! I was able to see the 14** **th** **Broadway Anniversary performance yesterday and attend a special reception with the cast and I had so much fun!**

 **RavenCurls: We'll have a fast forward soon, but not a huge gap.**

 **Satilliteheart: We'll deal with the Cuthbert situation soon. We can't have him getting in the way of our Fiyeraba, now can we?**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Ah, I've heard of that musical, but never seen it. I'll have to rectify that.**

* * *

Nessarose giggled as she bounced into her sister's room. Hiding her smile behind her hand, she crept up to her sister's sleeping form and climbed on top of her. "Fabala," she whispered, gently shaking her sister's arm.

Elphaba groaned and turned away from her sister.

"Fabala, wake up!"

"Nessa, go back to your room."

"I can't. I'm awake! And that means that you have to be awake. And it's Lurlinemas!" the younger girl said with a whine. "Come on, Fabala! We have to get ready to have Lurlinemas!"

"Go have Lurlinemas without me."

Nessarose rolled her eyes. "I _can't_ , Fabala! _Wake up!"_

Elphaba slowly opened one eye to glare at her sister before reluctantly pushing herself up and leaning against her headboard. The younger girl beamed and leaped forward to hug her sister.

"Merry Lurlinemas, Fabala!"

"Merry Lurlinemas, Nessie," Elphaba smiled as she returned the hug.

"Did you see the snow outside?"

"Considering the fact that I just opened up my eyes, no."

Nessarose huffed as she slid off her sister's bed. "Come on! We have to open presents now!"

"Nessa, we can't go downstairs in our nightwear," Elphaba said as she pushed the cover away from her body and slid off the bed.

Nessa thought for a moment, then deemed her sister correct and went to get dressed as Elphaba did the same. A half-hour later, both Thropp sisters made their way down the stairs to the parlor, where the royal family was already.

"Merry Lurlinemas, girls," the queen said, smiling softly.

"Merry Lurlinemas, Your Majesties," the girls curtsied in unison.

Galinda looked up and immediately pulled the girls over to the tree. The children immediately busied themselves opening their presents. When Nessarose opened her new tea set, she and Galinda immediately went into planning a tea party before she went back home. Elphaba took the time to see what else was under the tree, but when she turned around, she saw Fiyero holding out a gift for her.

"Merry Lurlinemas, Elphaba," he said with a shy smile.

Elphaba stared at the present for a moment before gently taking it from the prince. She had given the prince a new chess set, but she didn't expect him to give her anything in return. "Thank you, Your Highness," she said softly as she placed the box on the floor and slowly began to tear off the wrapping paper. She opened the box and gasped, pulling out a beautifully crafted wooden horse. It was a deep chestnut color and looked extremely real. The green girl looked up at the prince and smiled softly. "Thank you, Your Highness. It's beautiful."

The prince blushed slightly as she went to give gifts to Nessarose and his cousin. Elphaba looked at the horse and back at the prince. She sighed. She knew she couldn't keep disliking the prince forever. After all, they would be living under the same roof for a few more years to come. Surely they had to get along.

 _Living under the same roof all these years hasn't stopped him from being mean to you,_ the voice in her head said.

Elphaba blinked. She saw Nessarose thanking the prince for her new doll and Galinda was admiring her new makeup set.

"May we go play in the snow now?" Galinda asked excitedly as she turned towards the adults.

The adults, knowing that Galinda would only keep asking until she got her way, agreed and all the children got dressed to go outside.

The blonde giggled as she raced out into the show, with Nessarose not very far behind her. Elphaba wasn't as enthusiastic about the snow, and neither was Fiyero. The two stood back and watched their relatives attempt to make a snowman. It looked like a lot of fun, and Elphaba wanted to join them, but something was holding her back.

"Elphie, come help us!" Galinda called, struggling to roll a ball big enough for the middle of the snowman.

"Coming, Your Highness!" Elphaba called back, giving Fiyero a small smile before hurrying away.

The girls made a snowman together, and once they were finished, Galinda asked Nessarose to go back inside and get the carrot for the nose while she and Elphaba looked for the rocks. The brunette ran inside and quickly returned, and the girls were able to declare their snowman complete.

"Snowball fight!" Galinda suddenly exclaimed, forming a snowball in her gloved hands and throwing it at Elphaba.

The green girl quickly ducked and the girls soon became involved in a snowball fight. Elphaba took cover behind a tree as she attempted to catch her breath. She was about to rejoin the fight when she felt something hit her arm. She looked down and noticed the bits of snow still sticking to her cloak. Her gaze shifted and she locked gazes with the prince. He was giving her a small smile.

"It's Galinda and me versus you and Nessa," the prince said, and Elphaba quickly realized that this had become a battle.

She nodded, albeit a bit tentatively, but ran away when she saw the prince beginning to form another snowball. Soon, all four children were battling each other for who could stay on their feet the longest.

"Truce!" Nessarose called out in surrender.

"We laugh at your truce!" Galinda said as she began to form another snowball.

"Why don't we play another game for a while?" Fiyero offered, seeing how both Elphaba and Nessarose were exhausted.

Galinda looked at her cousin and pondered the thought. "Hide and seek! Fiyero, you count and we'll hide."

Before Fiyero had a chance to question it, Galinda had already run away, looking for a hiding place. The prince sighed as he began to count. He heard the muffled footsteps of the girls around him, but by the time he reached twenty, it had stopped.

"Ready or not, here I come!" the prince called as he opened his eyes and looked around. He immediately spotted a hint of green from behind a large snow bank and smiled to himself. "Found you!" he exclaimed, jumping out from the front of the snowman and startling the green girl.

"How did you find me so quickly?" Elphaba asked.

"It's kind of hard for you to blend in."

Elphaba looked at the prince for a beat before frowning and hurrying back inside. The prince immediately realized his mistake and called after her, but Elphaba ignored him. She knew it. The voice in her head was right. The prince would never change.

The green girl immediately went back inside and a maid took her cloak.

"Are you alright, Elphaba?" the queen asked, coming out of the parlor when she heard the door open.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Elphaba lied with a curtsy. "I simply came inside because I was feeling cold."

"Come sit in front of the fire. We don't want you getting sick again."

Elphaba really wanted to be somewhere a bit more private, but couldn't refuse the queen, so she nodded and walked into the parlor. Thankfully, the parlor was empty. The royal family probably went into their private apartments and her parents probably joined them or went back to their own. She sat alone in front of the fire, hoping the prince didn't follow her inside.

 _He probably didn't even mean it like that,_ Elphaba said to herself. _I'm probably just_ _overreacting._

 _But what if he did mean it? You said yourself that he would never change._

 _Yes, but –_

 _But what?_

 _I'm trying to be nice to him._

 _You can be nice to someone and still not trust them._

 _But I want to trust him._

 _Why?_

 _Because… because…_

 _Because why?_

"Elphaba?"

Elphaba jumped and turned around, seeing Fiyero behind her. He really had to stop surprising her like that.

"I'm sorry," he said, looking extremely remorseful. "I… I didn't mean what I said. I wasn't trying to... make a comment about your skin."

"I… I know you didn't, Your Highness. I'm sorry for overreacting."

"No, you didn't overreact." The prince took a deep breath. "May I ask you something?"

Elphaba nodded.

"What will it take for me to regain your trust?"

 _He said 'regain' like he had it to begin with_ , the voice said, but Elphaba ignored it.

"And don't tell me that I don't have to," Fiyero said. "I can see it. I've been nothing but horrible to you and… I want to change. I don't want to call you hurtful names anymore or try to get you into trouble. I… I want us to get along."

 _How long was he rehearsing that?_

"I want to get along, too," Elphaba said, wanting nothing more than for that annoying, negative voice to shut up. "I'm sorry I –"

"You apologize a lot."

Elphaba blinked at the bluntness. "I'm sor-"

"Please stop apologizing."

"I'm sor- I mean… okay."

Fiyero relaxed a bit. "Do you… do you want to go back outside?"

"Are my sister and your cousin still outside?"

"If I know Galinda, she will stay as quiet as a mouse and not move until she is found."

"Nessa is the same way," Elphaba said with a slight chuckle as she moved to stand up. She felt a sudden pain in her side and she crashed to the floor with a yelp.

"Elphaba!" the prince said as he knelt at her side. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"Yes… yes, I'm fine," the green girl said as she pushed herself up, rubbing her side. "I… I don't know what came over me."

The prince looked worried, but didn't say anything more about it. Elphaba asked the maid for her cloak again and the two went back outside.

"Finally!" Galinda exclaimed overdramatically when Fiyero found her behind a wall. "I thought you would never find me and I would have to freeze to death out here!"

"Nessa!" Elphaba called. "Nessa, you've won! You can come out now!"

The three began to search for the youngest member of their group. It was Galinda that found her hiding beneath a snow-covered bush. Elphaba immediately took her sister inside to warm up and the two royals followed. A maid brought them all hot chocolate with marshmallows and they all sat in front of the fire. Galinda was in the middle of talking about a novel she had been reading when Elphaba let out a yelp, spilling her drink all over herself as she clutched her side.

"Fabala, are you alright?" Nessarose asked, her voice overflowing with concern.

"Yes, I'm fine," Elphaba answered, though she was clearly still in pain.

"This is the second time today this has happened," Fiyero said.

"Second time today?" Nessarose echoed. "Fabala, maybe Mama and Father should send for the doctor."

"No," Elphaba protested, shaking her head. "I'm fine."

"Elphaba –"

"Really, Nessie," the green girl said softly. "I'm fi-" Another pain hit and Elphaba gritted her teeth.

"Mama! Father!" the younger Thropp called. She stood up and hurried to the doorway of the parlor to call for her parents again. Melena and Frexspar hurriedly came at the sound of their daughter.

"Nessa, what's the matter?" Frexspar asked, trying to catch his breath.

"Fabala's in pain," Nessarose said, looking back at her sister.

Galinda was clutching her friend's hand, while Fiyero stood off a bit, not knowing what to do. Melena hurried to her daughter and gently placed her hand on the small of her back. "Fabala?"

"My side hurts," the green girl moaned, looking at her mother.

"It is aching?" Melena asked.

Elphaba shook her head. "No. It's a much sharper pain than an ache."

The lady's maid helped her daughter to her feet and helped her out of the room. She asked her husband to send for the doctor and escorted her daughter to her room. "Stay here, children!" she called to Nessarose, Galinda, and Fiyero.

"Just relax, Fabala," Melena said as she brushed her daughter's hair away from her face.

"Lady Melena," a maid said as she knocked on the door. "Her Majesty is calling for you."

Melena frowned, but nodded dutifully and went to attend to the queen, asking the maid to watch Elphaba. Elphaba's pain subsided from stabbing to a steady, throbbing pain. She curled into a fetal position, but no matter how she moved, the pain didn't go away.

By the time the doctor arrived, her mother still hadn't returned from the queen. Elphaba never liked it when the doctor examined her, but now really hated it because she was in pain, scared, and really wanted her mother with her.

The doctor whispered something to his assistant, who frowned as he wrote something down in a small pad. Elphaba inquired as to what he was writing, but he simply reassured her that she would be fine, which didn't absolutely nothing to reassure her.

Melena still hadn't returned from her duties, but when the doctor emerged from the room, Frexspar was waiting outside. Nessarose had snuck upstairs, despite her mother's order to stay in the parlor, and was listening from behind the corner. She immediately ducked out of sight when the doctor came out, and slowly peeked her head out when she heard their hushed voices.

All she was able to catch were the words, "Sick… appendix… removal… vital… surgery."

* * *

 **CLIFFY! MWAHAHAHAHA!**

 **Also, the eleventh annual Greg Awards are now happening! I'm hosting, so visit my profile to nominate your favorite authors and stories. Nominations close November 30** **th** **, 2017.**


	15. Chapter 14

**Ozian-in-Australia: It was originally supposed to be her stomach, but I decided to change it. LOL!**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Of course I've seen the movie! And I went back and fixed those typos. I guess my grammar and spell checker isn't as infallible as it seems. And you'll just have to read the chapter to find out about the surgery. And you're the LAST person who should talk about not liking cliffies, missy!**

 **Satilliteheart: The wolf was meant to show Fiyero that Elphaba does care about him. And the significance of the appendix surgery will be revealed in the next chapter. It isn't so much about the actual surgery. It's more of what happens after because of it. Both things are important to the plot.**

* * *

Melena spent her free moments with her daughter. She watched over her as she slept, her face contorting in pain a few times. She wished there was more she could do. But she was mostly worried about the surgery.

Even though the Vinkus was very advanced in medical technology, it wasn't advanced enough to where Melena could be less worried. The castle doctor had extensive knowledge of how the body worked and knew what he was doing, but there was always the high risk of infection. And that's what worried Melena the most. Not the surgery, which she was still very worried about, but she was more worried about the risks that came after.

Elphaba stirred and slowly opened her eyes. "M-Mother?"

The older Thropp looked down and gently took her hand. "Yes, Fabala?"

"M-May I have some juice, please?"

"I'm sorry, Fabala, but no. You can only have water for the next few hours."

"I'm hungry."

Melena smiled sympathetically. "I'm sorry, Fabala. After tomorrow, you can eat whatever you want."

Elphaba moaned, clearly unhappy, and Melena gently squeezed her hand. "Would you like some water?"

The green girl shook her head.

"It will make you feel less hungry."

Elphaba was silent for a moment before a whispered "Okay," slipped through her slightly parted lips.

Melena smiled as she called for a maid to bring up a glass of water. Before the maid had returned, Elphaba fell back asleep. Melena hurried out of the room and grabbed some mending she could do. She sat next to her daughter's bed, continuing her vigil as she mended the queen's clothes.

An hour later, she was startled out of her nap by a knock at the door. Blinking, she slowly rose to her feet and went to answer the door.

"May we see Elphie now?"

Melena looked down to see Galinda, Nessarose, and Fiyero. "I'm sorry, children, but Elphaba is resting now."

"But I want to see Elphie before I go home tomorrow," the blonde said with a pout.

"I understand, my dear, but Elphaba needs her rest. She has a very big day ahead of her tomorrow."

"Will she be alright?"

"Of course she will." Melena tried to think of a way to make the blonde princess feel better. "Why don't you all draw Elphaba some 'get well' cards?"

The blonde perked up and nodded, linking arms with her cousin and Nessarose as she escorted them back down to the parlor. The mother went back into the room and continued with her work, though she was half distracted as to what laid in store for her daughter.

It was late at night when Frexspar went searching for his wife. He found her fast asleep in the chair next to Elphaba's bed. Smiling softly, he slowly approached her and gently wrapped his arms around her.

Melena startled awake and blinked sleepily at her husband. "Wha… Frex… what time is it?"

"Too late for you to not be asleep in bed," he answered softly, careful not to wake Elphaba.

Melena looked over at her daughter. "It took her a while to fall asleep. She's so scared for tomorrow."

"I understand," Frexspar said with a soft sigh. "We're all worried, but staying up all night isn't going to help."

"I don't want to leave her," Melena whispered. Softly, she added, "And I don't want her to leave me."

The king's advisor sighed softly and kissed his wife's forehead. He felt her breath quicken slightly and realized that she was crying. He pulled her against him and tried to wipe her tears away, but to no avail.

"Operations are just… so dangerous. There are no guaranteed positive outcomes."

"I know, Melena."

"And she's so young."

"The doctor knows what he's doing, Melena," Frexspar whispered, still trying to be reassuring, but knowing he wasn't helping very much. He couldn't even calm his own fears about what laid ahead.

Sleep didn't come easily for either parent that night. They couldn't stop worrying about their daughter, and the didn't expect anyone to think that they would. Hours later, Melena was up before the sun, along with Frexspar… and Elphaba.

According to a maid, the green girl had woken up several times during the night complaining about the pain in her side, and about how tired and hungry she was. She asked for her mother several times, but the maid had said that she was asleep. At first, Melena was angry that the maid didn't come to get her when her daughter was calling for her, but understood. She couldn't support her daughter if she couldn't even keep her eyes open.

The doctor and his assistant arrived a few hours after everyone woke up to perform the operation. At first, Elphaba was extremely scared and didn't want the doctor anywhere near her. She would try to curl away from him, but her side refused to let her do that.

"Drink this, Miss Elphaba," the doctor said, handing Elphaba a large bottle of a dark purple liquid.

"What is it?" the green girl questioned.

"Wine."

Elphaba looked skeptical. "You're giving me wine?"

"It's a sedative."

"You're going to make me drunk?"

"No. We're going to make it so you don't wake up during the operation."

"But –"

"Miss Elphaba, please stop asking questions and drink the wine so we can get started."

Elphaba frowned. "I want my mother."

"She isn't available right now."

"Yes I am," Melena said as she came in the door and hurried to her daughter's side.

Elphaba looked up at her mother and smiled softly.

"Everything's going to be fine, Fabala," Melena said as she softly kissed her daughter's forehead. "Listen to the doctor."

"Will you stay with me?"

Melena hesitated. "I… I'll try."

Elphaba didn't look satisfied with that answer, but Melena simply kissed her forehead and gave her hand a squeeze before leaving her in the doctor's care. He stepped forward and gave Elphaba the wine. The green girl sighed, but took the bottle. "Ugh!" she grunted after taking a sip.

"I know it's strong, Miss Elphaba, but you have to drink all of it," the doctor said, watching as his assistant got his tools ready.

She scrunched up her nose, but did as she was told. The last thing she remembered was the doctor taking the bottle from her and the feeling of the covers being removed from her body.

* * *

When Elphaba came to, she was vaguely aware of the throbbing pain in her side. She looked down and noticed a thick, slightly bloody bandage wrapped around her waist. A strong smell of something she couldn't quite identify hung in the air, but it made her want to throw up.

A clock-tick later, the door opened and the doctor came in. "Ah, Miss Elphaba. You're awake. How do you feel?"

"Tired, and I have a headache," the queen girl replied, closing her eyes. "And my side hurts. It smells in here. Can you open the window?"

"Well, the good news is that the surgery was a success. Your appendix has been removed," the doctor said, opening the window a small crack.

"What does that mean?"

"That means no more pain."

"Other than right now?"

"That pain will soon go away," the doctor said as he took a bottle of a dark yellow substance. "You must drink this."

"What's in it?"

"Must you ask so many questions?"

Elphaba just stared at the doctor and refused to take the vial.

"It's a mixture of crushed echinacea herb and ginkgo biloba extract. It's to help boost your immune system against an infection and help reduce inflammation. It will help you recover much quicker," the doctor said as he poured the medicine into a spoon.

Elphaba blinked at the medicine and took it. It didn't taste great, but it didn't taste horrible, either. The doctor gave her two spoonfuls of the medicine before writing something down in his book.

"You must continue to take two spoonfuls of the medicine three times a day for the next two weeks. You must remain quarantined in your room for the rest of the week, to reduce the chances of you catching an infection. I will be the only person allowed to see you, so if you need anything, you will have to tell me."

Elphaba frowned. "I can't see my parents or sister?"

"Not if you don't want an infection."

Elphaba groaned, but conceded. "Very well. May I have a sandwich, please?"

"It's best if you only eat soft foods for now, Miss Elphaba."

"Ice cream?"

"How about soup?"

"Chicken soup?"

"Very well," the doctor said as he nodded and left. He returned with the soup and stayed with the green girl as she ate.

"May I have some ice cream now, please?"

The doctor turned around with an exasperated sigh. He was sure this was going to be the longest week of his life.

Finally, at the end of the week, the doctor declared Elphaba no longer sensitive to infections and lifted her quarantine. Nessarose was elated to see her sister again and bombarded her with questions, mostly on how strong the wine was.

"Will you have a scar now?" the younger asked, her eyes widening, looking at her sister's bandages. "Will it be big?"

"Nessarose," Frexspar sighed with a slight eye roll.

"I hope not," Elphaba said, her eyes also widening. "To both of those questions."

"I'm sure Elphaba wants to rest, Nessie," Melena said, trying to hold back her chuckles.

"I feel well-rested," Elphaba said, not catching her mother's hint… or choosing to ignore it. "But tell me about the New Year's party," she said as she turned back to her sister.

Nessarose laughed and went into detail about the fabulous party the king and queen had hosted. They always host a small party with close family and friends to end the old year and welcome the new one. It was the same party every year, so Elphaba hadn't missed anything extraordinarily new. She also told her about the fit Galinda had thrown when she had to leave without saying goodbye to her.

"I was worried they would have to call the guards to stop her from running up to your room," Nessarose said with a slight chuckle.

Elphaba felt bad for not being able to say goodbye to the blonde, but Nessarose told her not to think about it and gave her the 'get well' cards.

"The prince made you one, too," the younger Thropp said, pointing out the prince's card.

Elphaba examined the picture the prince drew for her. It was a sunny garden with lots of flowers (they looked like weeds, but she didn't say that out loud) and a sunny, cloudless sky. He was quite the artist. Inside, he wrote 'Feel better soon, Elphaba' in big letters. She smiled softly and gently put the card aside, but not without Nessarose noticing the slight blush on her cheeks.

The two sisters spent more time together until Nessa had to get ready for her voice lesson. Elphaba was left alone, which she didn't expect. When had her parents slipped out of the room? How did she not notice them? Had she really been _that_ involved in a conversation with her sister? As she pondered those questions and she relished in the silence for a bit before someone knocked on the door.

"Enter," she called, leaning back against her pillows.

The door opened and the prince peeked his head inside the room. "Hi. May I come in?"

Elphaba smiled softly. "Of course, Your Highness."

The prince slowly approached the green girl. "How… how are you feeling, Elphaba?"

"Fine," she answered honestly. "I mean… right now. Once the pain medicine wears off, it will be a completely different story."

Fiyero nodded slightly. "Do you… want to play a game?" He lifted the basket he was carrying, which Elphaba assumed were activities he brought to amuse her.

The green girl nodded and the two settled into a game of 'Go Fish'.

"Do you have any threes, Elphaba?" Fiyero asked as he organized his card.

Elphaba looked up. "What did you say?"

"Do you have any threes?"

"No, I mean… after that."

The prince looked up and blinked. "Elphaba?"

Elphaba regarded the prince for a while before handing him her three card.

"What is it?" he asked as he took the card and put down his matching set.

"It's just… it's weird."

"What is?"

"You calling me by my real name."

The prince looked confused, then deflated when he understood. "Oh."

"I mean, you've been doing it for a while and I know you're trying to change and I'm not trying to… I just… it's different, but in a good way. I… like it."

The prince looked up at her.

"I know you're trying to change, and I really appreciate it."

"I just want to show you that I really am sorry for being so horrible to you," he said softly.

"I know," Elphaba said quietly, suddenly not wanting to continue the conversation anymore. "Thank you for the card."

"Oh. You're welcome," the prince said, noticing all the cards on the green girl's nightstand.

The two fell silent again, only speaking to each other to play the game.

"Your Highness," Elphaba began after a while. "I –"

"Fiyero."

The prince's interruption caught her so off-guard that she was sure she hadn't heard him correctly. "I'm sorry?"

"Fiyero. I… I want you to call me Fiyero. Just Fiyero. At least, when we're alone… which we are right now."

The green girl blinked as she processed this new information. "O-Okay… Fiyero." Saying the prince's name without his title felt weird. Almost as weird as hearing Fiyero say her name.

"What were you going to say?"

"Oh. Um… I…" The green girl looked down slightly. "I don't remember."

"Oh."

A knock on the door and Melena entered, holding a spoon. "Oh, there you are, Prince Fiyero. It's almost time for your fencing lesson."

"May I stay here a bit longer?" the prince asked.

Melena looked at her daughter, who nodded, and turned back to the prince. "I suppose so, but only until your lesson."

Fiyero nodded and watched as Melena took the bottle of medicine and poured it into the spoon. She gave Elphaba her two spoonfuls before closing the bottle and nodding to the prince before leaving, closing the door behind her.

"What does that taste like?" Fiyero asked, staring at the bottle.

"It's not sweet, but it's not bitter, either. It's a bit hard to explain. It tastes like it was once sweet, but then it was diluted. Is it my turn?"

"Yes."

The green girl looked back down at her cards. "Do you have any kings?"

The prince glanced down and shook his head. "Go fish."

* * *

 **The next chapter is a 3-year time hop. And we'll get to see someone we haven't seen in a while.**


	16. Chapter 15

**May Year 1158**

Elphaba grunted as she released the arrow from the bow, watching it fly to the target. It hit right outside the center and she sighed. Why couldn't she get this right?

"You're still practicing, Elphaba?"

The green girl turned around and bowed. "Yes, Sir Davion."

"Practice makes perfect, Elphaba, but I must advise you to take a break. You have a big day tomorrow."

Elphaba smiled slightly. She had a big test tomorrow. A test that would determine the rest of her in the service of the castle. "Yes, sir."

The knight nodded and left the green girl. Elphaba looked at the bull's eye and groaned. Even though archery wasn't on her test, she still wanted to get it perfect.

"Elphaba, there you are!"

The green girl turned and smiled. "Hello, Hann."

The eighteen-year-old smiled as he brushed his hair away from his face. "You're still practicing?"

"Yes. I have to get everything perfect for tomorrow."

"Elphaba, you'll be fine. I remember when I took the test for the first time. I was terrified."

"And what happened?"

"I was almost knocked out of the ring. Sir Davion doesn't go easy."

"Great," the green girl sighed. "That helps a lot."

The older knight smiled sympathetically. "You'll be fine. Don't worry. You'll pass."

Elphaba gave her old friend a grateful smile. "Thanks. But… will you practice with me?"

Hann smiled and grabbed two practice swords and pinned a handkerchief to his pocket. He was more than ready when Elphaba attacked him and tried to grab the handkerchief. He wasn't going easy on her and Elphaba was soon out of breath.

"Keep going," he said, gesturing to her sword. "And pay attention to your footwork."

The green girl inhaled deeply and attacked him again. Hann met her sword with his and pushed against her. She felt herself bending backwards and pushed harder. She pushed Hann back and remembered what he said about her footwork and tried to use that to her advantage. She danced around him and took the opportunity to grab the handkerchief.

"Wonderful job, Elphaba," Hann said as he caught his breath. "You are ready for tomorrow."

The green girl smiled. "Thank you, Hann."

Hann nodded. "I have to go to a tracking lesson now. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay."

Later that afternoon, Elphaba was sitting on a bench in the garden, her nose buried in a thick book. She heard footsteps approaching her, but was too invested in her studying to pay it any attention. She gasped softly when she felt someone tap her on the shoulder and turned around.

"Hi."

The green girl sighed. "You startled me."

"It was my intention to."

"Well, you've succeeded. Congratulations," she said with an eye roll. "Is there a specific reason you've come to find me?"

"Yes. I wanted to know if you wanted to go riding later."

Elphaba looked at the prince. "I would love to, but –"

"But?"

"I have my test tomorrow."

"Oh, right. That." Fiyero sat on a bench next to her. "What about after?"

The green girl thought for a moment. "Alright."

"Don't worry about the test so much. It's not as bad as it sounds."

"Really?"

"Really. Plus, you're very good. You've come a long way since…"

The prince didn't have to finish that sentence because Elphaba knew what he was going to say. "Thank you, Fiyero."

He smiled softly. "Have you decided what you're going to do for your birthday?"

"Hopefully celebrate passing my test."

"Other than that?"

Elphaba thought for a moment. "I haven't really considered it."

"Oh. In that case, I'll have a surprise ready for you."

"Fiyero," Elphaba sighed when an eye roll.

The prince chuckled and played with Elphaba's braid. The green girl glanced at him, but didn't turn around until she felt him take her hair down. She rarely wore her hair down, except for when Galinda visited and she had no other choice.

"Will you ever grow your hair out again?" the prince asked, watching as Elphaba's hair fell three inches past her shoulders.

"I like it short," Elphaba said softly, brushing her hair away from her face. "It's much easier to maintain. And I can't really wear it long anymore. It would get in the way too much."

The two sat in silence for a moment. Elphaba knew the prince wanted to say something to her, but felt something holding him back. Before she could ask what it was, she heard her mother calling her inside.

"I should go," Elphaba said as she stood.

Fiyero nodded and watched her go. "Elphaba!"

She stopped in the doorway and turned around. "Yes?"

"I… I… never mind."

Elphaba gave the prince a look, but nodded and went inside to see what her mother wanted.

"You've been practicing very hard, Elphaba," Melena said as she placed two sugar cubes in her teacup.

"Thank you, Mother," Elphaba said, picking up her own cup and taking a sip.

Melena cleared her throat and Elphaba looked up. Her mother was frowning at her teacup and Elphaba looked down before realizing her mistake. She slowly lifted her pinky off the cup and looked back at her mother. Melena gave her a slight approval nod and took a delicate sip from her own cup.

Elphaba bit back a sigh. She knew her mother had never fully approved of her knight training. Then again, there wasn't much she could say in protest. It's not like she had any other option. Well… she did, but that was less ideal. At least she remained in the castle. That had to count for something, right?

"Lord and Lady Caradoc are hosting an afternoon tea tomorrow at their mansion. They have invited you and Nessarose."

Elphaba blinked. "I have my test tomorrow, Mother."

"You have that test tomorrow morning. That gives you more than enough time to get ready."

"Tea with… Cuthbert?"

"Yes, of course he will be there, Elphaba. And I have a new gown for you to wear."

"A… new… gown?"

"Of course. What else did you think you would wear?"

The green girl looked down at her half-empty teacup. "Of course, Mother."

In all honesty, Elphaba wasn't dreading the tea. She was dreading seeing Cuthbert again. She didn't despise him… anymore. In fact, she found him to be rather sweet… when he wasn't talking about himself. Things were just… different now.

"I have accepted the invitation on both of your behalves."

Elphaba forced herself not to choke on the tea. "You have?"

Melena nodded. "It would have been rude to have refused."

"I know."

The lady's maid regarded her daughter as she continued to sip her tea. Elphaba knew exactly what her mother was thinking. No matter what she did or how well she did it, there would always be a part of her mother that would be disappointed in her. And there was nothing she could do about it.

* * *

"Your Highness, are you even paying attention?"

Fiyero blinked lazily. "Yes."

"Then can you tell me which one of your ancestors stopped the Great Invasion of Yuiltosir?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

"Yes."

"Prince Fiyero!"

The prince snapped back to reality and looked at his tutor. "Yes?"

The tutor pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. "Prince Fiyero, I must insist that you pay attention to your lessons."

"You could stand to make it a bit more interesting."

"Your Highness, you are seventeen years old. It's high time you began to act like a proper prince of the kingdom."

"Fine," Fiyero said glumly. "Can we take a break?"

"Very well. We will take a break from history. Have you begun to write your speech for the hospital opening?"

The prince gulped. That wasn't what he meant, and his tutor knew it. "Sort of… except for the part after 'Hello, and welcome, everyone'."

"Prince Fiyero," the tutor said, not even trying to hide his exhaustion and disappointment. He was about to continue when someone knocked on the door.

"Enter," the tutor called, beginning to straighten up some papers.

The door opened and the king and queen entered. "Sir Blankett."

The tutor looked up and immediately bowed. "Your Majesties."

"Has Fiyero finished his morning lessons?" the queen asked.

"Er… yes, Your Majesties."

"Good. Fiyero, it's time to go to the courtyard for Elphaba's test."

The prince immediately brightened and thanked his tutor before rushing out. The monarchs followed their son out. When they got to the courtyard, the first thing Fiyero noticed was the large, intricate scaffold leading up to the west tower. At the base of the scaffold were loose bundles of soft hay, which Fiyero knew were in case Elphaba should fall. His eyes fell on the chalk outline of a circle on the ground and instantly remembered his test.

"Good day, Squire Elphaba," the king said as he approached the green girl.

Elphaba smiled confidently. "Good day, Your Majesties," she said with a bow.

Sir Davion came forward and explained what the test would be. Elphaba would have to take a silk color band from his pocket without being knocked down or out of the ring. Then she would have to climb the scaffold and rescue the damsel in distress (which was really a stuffed potato bag) from the top of the tower and bring her safely down.

"We wish you luck, Elphaba," the queen smiled.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Elphaba nodded, then stole a quick glance at Fiyero.

The prince smiled back and sat at the picnic table with his parents. Elphaba and Sir Davion grabbed practice swords and stepped into the ring. At the trumpet blast, they began.

It was very clear that Elphaba had practiced a great deal. She and Sir Davion sparred for a bit and at one point, it looked like he was going to knock Elphaba down. But the green girl recovered quickly and was able to grab the handkerchief. Everyone applauded and she nodded to Sir Davion before beginning to climb the scaffold.

The prince was watching with interest as Elphaba climbed. He heard Elphaba's soft grunts as she pulled herself up. He smiled softly, watching as she delicately balanced on the beams and climbed higher and higher and… and she was so pretty and...

Fiyero felt like slapping himself. What was he thinking? Why was he thinking those thoughts about Elphaba? They were just friends. They had been just friends for the past three years. Plus, she was going to be a knight. Even if he had feelings for her, he couldn't act upon them. But thank Oz he didn't have any feelings for her. Thank _Oz_.

Elphaba reached the top of the scaffold and climbed on top of the tower. She was gone from Fiyero's view for a few clock-ticks before she reappeared, carrying the dummy. She paused briefly, contemplating how she was going to climb back down the scaffold and return the dummy safely to the ground.

 _Come on, Elphaba_ , Fiyero thought, slyly crossing his fingers.

Elphaba took a deep breath before she slowly started climbing down. She was halfway down when she felt her food slip. She heard everyone below her gasp and she tried to regain her footing. She steadied herself again and took a deep breath before continuing down.

When she landed, she was met with cheers and applause. She smiled to herself as she straightened, gently placing the potato bag on the ground before accepting the congratulations. Sir Davion gave her a wide smile and an encouraging nod. Nessarose hurried over to her and gave her a tight hug.

"That was amazing, Fabala! I got so worried when you lost your footing, but you kept going. You looked so calm up there," she gushed as she tightly hugged her sister.

"I can assure you that I was anything _but_ calm," Elphaba said with a slight chuckle.

"Well done, Fabala," Frexspar said, approaching his daughter with a soft smile.

Elphaba gladly accepted the hug from her father. "Thank you, Father."

"You did very well, Elphaba," Hann said when it was his turn to offer his congratulations. "Very fancy footwork."

"I wonder who taught me that," the green girl responded with a slight smirk.

"Who, indeed," Hann laughed.

"Incredible job, Elphaba."

She turned and bowed to the prince. "Thank you, Your Highness."

"Most excellent!" the king said with a wide smile as he and the queen approached the green girl. "We are very pleased, Elphaba. Well done."

"Thank you, Your Majesties," Elphaba nodded.

"You have clearly worked very hard, Elphaba, and you have proven your skills and agility in your test today," the queen smiled.

"I have, Your Majesty, and thank you again."

The monarchs smiled and allowed Elphaba to be surrounded by her family and friends.

Well, _most_ of her family, at least…

Elphaba looked around and bit back a frown. Everyone she loved and cared about was there, surrounding and congratulating her. Everyone except… her own mother.


	17. Chapter 16

**AirHawk19: LOL! Yes! I was thinking about that episode when writing this chapter! I loved that show so much!**

* * *

Elphaba sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her mother had told the maid to put her in a dark purple dress with long sleeves and a slightly fuller skirt than she would have liked. She had to admit, the dress was very beautiful. That fact simply was that the beautiful dress was on her… a knight-in-training.

She bit her lip as she studied her calloused hands. She wondered what would happen if she went to the tea without gloves. She never likes wearing them, anyway. Thinking the better of it, she reached for her elbow-length white, silk gloves and put them on. She really didn't want to go to the Caradocs' mansion. What was she going to talk about? She was sure that her knight training wasn't an appropriate tea topic, and if tested that theory, she knew trouble would soon follow. She really wished her mother didn't force her to do this.

"Fabala?" Nessarose asked as she knocked on the door. "Are you ready to go?"

Elphaba opened her door. "I'm ready."

The brunette smiled. "You look beautiful."

"I didn't leave a trace of this morning, did I?"

Nessarose frowned. "No, Fabala."

The green girl let out a relieved breath. The younger Thropp looked like she wanted to say something, but instead, reached for her sister's hand. Together, the two girls made their way down the steps to the waiting carriage.

"I'm very proud of you today, Fabala," Nessarose said as she carriage sped down the road. "I knew you would pass your test."

"Thanks, Nessa."

Her sister sounded distracted, and Nessarose was going to find out why. "What's wrong?"

The green girl looked up. She knew she could say that nothing was wrong, but she knew her sister would only pester her until she got the truth, so she decided to skip the whole argument. "Mother wasn't there."

"I… I'm sure she wanted to be there, but –"

"Nessa, we both knew she didn't _want_ to be there."

Nessa knew that her sister was right, but she also didn't want to say it out loud. Luckily, she didn't have to, since Elphaba did it for her.

"She never wanted me to start training in the first place."

"You can't blame her, Fabala. Things just… happened and… it's not your fault."

"But she still blames me."

"That doesn't make it your fault."

"But it also doesn't change how she views it."

The carriage stopped in front of the mansion, bringing the girls' conversation to a halt. Elphaba and Nessarose were helped out of the carriage and escorted up to the mansion.

The tea was a complete blur for Elphaba. She barely remembered the details. A few people asked how she was feeling, and Elphaba had to bite back a sarcastic remark and simply say that she was fine. She knew what they meant. The only thing she clearly remembered was meeting Jezamine.

Jezamine was a beautiful young woman of eighteen. She had soft, light brown curls and a slim figure. Her facial features were soft and every time she spoke, she sounded like she was singing. She was the daughter of a nobleman from the outer Vinkus, but that wasn't the thing that Elphaba went home remembering.

She went home remembering that she was Cuthbert's new fiancée.

She wasn't very surprised. After all, after she and Cuthbert were split up, it was only natural for Lord and Lady Cuthbert to try and find another suitable wife for him. She wasn't very upset, either. It's not like she had her heart on marrying Cuthbert. But they had grown to know each other, so she had figured that she wouldn't _hate_ spending the rest of her life with him.

She didn't hate Jezamine, either. They were polite enough to each other, although it was clear that Jezamine had a clear disdain for her skin. But that didn't bother the green girl in the least. She was now free to not care about what Cuthbert did for the rest of his life.

"You seemed uncomfortable during tea, Fabala," Nessarose said as they rode home.

"I did?"

"I don't think anyone else noticed, but yes, you did. Was it Jezamine?"

"No… at least… not entirely."

"Than what was it?"

"Probably just the fact that up until three years ago… I _was_ Jezamine."

"You wanted to marry Cuthbert after all?"

"No. I mean… I wouldn't have _completely_ hated it."

The younger Thropp looked down slightly. "I'm sorry, Fabala."

"Don't be. I'm fine," Elphaba said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Perfectly fine."

Nessarose didn't look so sure, but didn't question her sister further on the matter. Soon, they were back at the castle.

"I'm going to change and practice some more," Elphaba announced as she was helped down.

"Okay. I'm going to the library."

The sisters quickly parted ways. Elphaba immediately ran up to her room and changed into a combat dress. It was a long-sleeved dark brown dress with a skirt that stopped just below her knees. The thing about this dress was that it had matching shorts attached underneath the skirt, making it more suitable for practicing. Elphaba liked wearing the dress to practice in because it allowed her to move more freely. Plus, her mother hated it when she wore pants.

The green girl went to the courtyard and picked up a practice sword before approaching a practice dummy. After practicing for an hour, she decided that it was time for a break. She went inside to go freshen up and changed into a simple dress.

She went to the library to find her sister, but Nessarose was nowhere to be found. Instead, Elphaba grabbed a random book from the non-fiction section and settled into an armchair.

"Why do I always find you in the library?"

The green girl startled slightly and looked up. "I like being up here."

"You always seem to be studying. Why don't you ever do something fun?"

"I am having fun."

"I mean real fun. Now, I do believe I offered to go riding with you."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Fiyero, you make it sound like _I_ asked _you_ to go riding."

The prince chuckled. "Come on," he said as he gently took the green girl's hand and tugged her out of the chair.

Though surprised by the sudden contact, the green girl didn't protest and followed the prince. When they got outside, Elphaba gasped at the sight before her.

"Two saddled horses?"

"I knew you would say yes."

"You just knew that I wouldn't say no."

"Same thing," the prince said, waving it off as he took the reigns from the stable boy, who bowed.

The green girl rolled her eyes and she mounted her horse and followed the prince. The two followed the trail near the castle to a large, open field.

"What are we doing in the Thousand Year Grasslands?" Elphaba asked as she and Fiyero dismounted. "How is this fun?"

"Being outdoors is much more fun than being cooped up in a stuffy, old library."

"I still have yet to see how."

"Well, for instance, you can't do this in a library," Fiyero said as he tapped Elphaba on the shoulder. "Tag! You're it!"

"Tag?" Elphaba called after the running prince, raising an eyebrow. "Really?"

"You can't catch me!"

"You're such a child!"

"Maybe, but I'm still faster than you!"

"Oh, really?"

The prince only laughed, but his laughter was cut off when he realized that Elphaba was running towards him. Soon, the two teenagers were chasing each other through the grasslands. Both of them were laughing, albeit Fiyero's laugh was a bit more breathless than Elphaba's. Finally, Elphaba tapped Fiyero on the shoulder and he stopped short, causing her to bump into him and they both tumbled to the ground.

They were laid their sides, facing each other, as they both tried to catch their breaths. Fiyero realized that Elphaba's braid had come undone and her hair was out. There wasn't a breeze, so her hair simply fell down her neck. Tiny beads of sweat glistened across her forehead and a few slowly began to make their way down her face.

"That… was… energizing…" Elphaba said as she wiped the sweat away with her sleeve.

"Yes… it was," the prince agreed, still looking at the green girl.

"Fiyero?"

"Yes?"

"You're staring at me."

"Uh-huh."

"Why?"

Instead of answering, the prince slowly scooted closer to her and gently cupped her cheeks with his hands. Elphaba didn't know if she approved of the contact, but she found herself unable to pull away.

"Fiyero…" she whispered.

The prince's lips slowly made contact with hers and she soon found herself experiencing a feeling she hadn't felt in three years. The kiss was calm and gentle, and she felt herself slowly being pulled in more and more. She gently pushed herself up and wrapped her arms around Fiyero's neck without breaking the kiss. Fiyero did the same and soon, the two were closer than they had ever been before. Eventually, they had to pull away because neither of them could hold their breath for very long and they looked into each other's eyes.

"I've been wanting to do that," Fiyero admitted quietly.

"Kiss me?"

The prince nodded, albeit a bit sheepishly.

"For how long?"

"I… don't know exactly."

Elphaba absent-mindedly traced simple patterns on Fiyero's shoulder, her mind still thinking about the kiss. "That felt… nice."

"You… enjoyed that?"

"Was I not supposed to?"

"I just thought that…"

"What?"

"Never mind."

Elphaba was about to ask what he meant by that, but he kissed her again and she immediately forgot her question. After a while, Elphaba was simply content with being held in the prince's arm, which made her think of another question.

"When did you start liking me?"

It took Fiyero a moment to realize that Elphaba was speaking to him and he awkwardly cleared his throat. "How long?" he repeated.

Elphaba nodded.

The prince sighed. "Honestly, I… I think I've always liked you. Even… even when we were children."

That made Elphaba fully turn around to face him. She didn't even have to say anything else to him, since the look on her face said it all.

"I know it's stupid, considering how horribly I treated you, but looking back… I think I did sort of like you."

"You _liked_ to bully me," Elphaba said before she could stop herself, looking away slightly. She noticed how quiet Fiyero was being and looked back at him. He was looking down, clearly embarrassed and upset. "I'm sorry. I… you've changed. You've come such a long way. We both have, but the way you treated me will forever be a part of my childhood and…"

"I get it," Fiyero said as he pushed himself to his feet.

"Fiyero, wait!" Elphaba said as she also stood. "I didn't mean…"

"I know I'll never be able to apologize enough to you for that, Elphaba. I've accepted that. But you don't think I've changed."

"Of course I do. I just said that I know you've changed."

"Yet you keep bringing up the past, like you expect me to relapse into my old behavior. You don't trust me to be your friend."

"I do trust you! I let you kiss me! It's just… I guess subconsciously… a part of me… is."

"Is what?"

"Worried. But I don't want to be. I want to be your friend, Fiyero. I want us to get along. I want… I want you to kiss me again."

The last sentence came out before Elphaba could really think it through, but she didn't regret saying it. It was true, as were the previous statements.

Fiyero looked at her and gave her a very slight smile. "You… want to kiss again?"

Elphaba nodded and gently pressed her lips against the prince's. Fiyero immediately complied and their conversation was abandoned… or at least filed away for later.

As the sun began to set, the two decided to head back before people began to get worried. They quickly rode back to the palace and were greeted by a worried-looking Melena.

"Your Highness, there you are!" she exclaimed as the prince and green girl dismounted their horses. "Your mother and father are calling for you. They are waiting for you in the throne room."

"Yes, Lady Melena," Fiyero said, handing his reins to the stable boy and watching as he walked off with both horses. He hurried inside to find his parents, leaving Elphaba alone with her mother.

"Mother –" Elphaba began, but was cut off by her mother's sharp glare. "I… I'm sorry." She was apologizing for more than one thing, and both of them knew it.

Melena's only response was to frown at her daughter before going back inside. Elphaba soon felt her eyes fill with tears, and a few of them escaped and ran down her cheek.

 _Knights don't cry_ , she thought stubbornly as she wiped the tears away.

* * *

 **We'll find out more of the backstory in the next chapter, but does anyone want to take a guess at what happened to Elphaba? And only a few more chapters to go (around 4 more if I calculated correctly).**

 **Also, Greg Award nominations are due to me by November 30** **th** **, 2017 at 12:00 Noon EST. Go to the Awards story to read the criteria and rules.**


	18. Chapter 17

**Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: I don't think Elphaba just coming out saying that she wanted to be a knight would have flown well. Of course there's a deeper reason. *Smirk***

* * *

"I've been meaning to ask you this, but… why did you want to become a knight?"

"Because I didn't want to join the convent," Elphaba said with a humorless laugh.

Fiyero and Elphaba were sitting on a bench in the gardens. They had just finished eating dinner and Elphaba decided that she wanted to get some fresh air before going to bed. Fiyero immediately offered to join her, saying that she shouldn't walk through the gardens alone in the evening.

"I am a knight, Fiyero," Elphaba had said as she walked with the prince. "I don't need an escort or chaperone."

"I never said you did. Maybe I simply wanted to join you and didn't think you should walk alone."

"Isn't it the job of the guards to protect the castle and everyone living in it?"

"Yes, so consider this just two friends taking a walk together."

And that's what Elphaba had considered it as. Just two friends… nothing more, nothing less, sharing a completely normal garden walk.

"I mean… why didn't you marry Cuthbert? Are you in love with someone else?"

"No. I mean… not really, but that's not the reason."

"Than what was?"

Elphaba turned away and remained silent.

"Of course, if you don't want to tell me, you don't have to."

"It was the only way I could still stay in the castle."

"Do you… plan to marry someone else?"

"I don't think anyone else would want me."

"Elphaba, if this is about your skin, then –"

"It's not about that."

"You didn't want to have children with him?"

"Whether I want to or not is an invalid argument now."

Fiyero blinked, not understanding.

"I can't have children."

Fiyero was silent, which really unnerved the green girl. She looked up and met his gaze, and found that he was staring at her with a look she couldn't quite identify.

"I don't… get sick anymore," she tried.

"You mean… you can't… you don't… bleed anymore?"

Elphaba got a metallic taste in her mouth and it made her feel disgusting. "No…"

"Why not?"

She gave the prince a look.

"Oh. Sorry," Fiyero quickly apologized, realizing that wasn't a very appropriate question.

Elphaba was silent for a while, and when she spoke again, her voice was barely louder than a whisper. "The medicine I was given when I had my appendix removed had echinacea and ginkgo biloba extract in it… which causes infertility." She took a breath before continuing. "We found out when I didn't bleed in over three months. At first, my mother thought I was pregnant and called for the doctor. That's when we found out."

The prince gently wrapped his arm around her. She stiffened, but didn't pull away. She wasn't looking at him, but Fiyero could tell that she felt very embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Fae."

"Don't be. It's not your fau- wait. What did you call me?"

Fiyero's breath caught in his throat when he realized what had slipped out. "Oh… Fae. I'm sorry. It's –"

"The old Vinkun version of my name," Elphaba finished for him.

She sounded impressed, so the prince took that as a good sign. "Yeah."

"How did you know that?"

"I was studying the traditional Vinkun names for my tutor and I saw it. It was also the name of my great-great-great-great-great-great aunt."

"She must have been very great," Elphaba said, chuckling softly.

Fiyero smiled and the two sat together in silence for a while. Elphaba slowly leaned her head against the prince's shoulder, letting out a relaxed sigh as she did. Fiyero's smile slowly grew as he gently pulled Elphaba closer.

"How do you feel?"

Elphaba blinked, then realized what Fiyero was referring to. "I'm fine. I guess I'm used to it now."

They lapsed back into silence.

"Did you ever want children?" Fiyero spoke after a while.

"I… I don't know," the green girl whispered. "I guess that because I knew that it was expected of me, I never really thought about whether or not _I_ really wanted children."

"How many people know?"

"Other than myself… Nessa, Mother, Father, your parents, the Caradocs… and you."

Fiyero counted on his fingers. Other than himself... and Elphaba, of course, eight other people knew.

"And I'd like to keep it that way," Elphaba said, giving the prince a sideways look.

"Of course. And... Galinda doesn't know? I thought you told her everything. Aren't you two best friends or something?"

"Galinda doesn't stop talking long enough for me to tell her anything that isn't related to something she wants to talk about. And she doesn't need to know. The less people know, the better and more normal everything will be. Besides, this isn't something you just go around telling everyone."

"Right," Fiyero said, and wisely dropped the topic. He looked up at the sky and smiled. "There's the Lyra constellation."

Elphaba looked up. "Where?"

"Right up there," Fiyero said, pointing in the direction of a cluster of stars.

"I see it," Elphaba smiled. "And there's the Vega star."

"And the Denab star."

"And the Cygnus constellation."

The prince looked at the green girl. "You like stargazing?"

"I used to love it." She looked at the prince. "Don't tell anyone, but… when I was little, I used to sneak out of bed and climb onto the first tier roof."

"You did what?"

Elphaba smiled shyly. "I would climb up there and sit up there for what seemed like hours, just watching the stars in the sky. It's so comforting and peaceful. I don't get to do it as much because training keeps me so busy and when I'm finished, I'm too exhausted to do anything but sleep."

Fiyero smiled knowingly, getting an idea of what he was going to give Elphaba for her birthday.

* * *

Elphaba's eighteenth birthday was very quiet. She spent most of her time alternating between reading in the parlor and reading in the library. The only time she wasn't reading was when her sister took her outside for a special birthday picnic in the gardens.

"Happy birthday, Fabala," Nessarose said as she handed her sister a wrapped box.

"Thank you, Nessie," the green girl smiled as she took the box and began to unwrap it. It was a beautiful carved wooden box with intricate swirl designs and a latch on the front.

"Nessa, it's so beautiful! Thank you."

"You're welcome. I made it myself."

"You… made this?" Elphaba looked up at her sister.

The brunette nodded. "I did."

"Nessa… this is incredible," the green girl amended her previous statement as she further exhumed the box and gave her sister a hug. "I love it."

Nessarose relaxed in her sister's arms. She really loved it when her sister hugged her. No matter how old she got or how different they became, she knew that fact would always remain true.

Frexspar gave his daughter a new constellation chart, which Elphaba was more than excited to use that night. Melena gave her a golden locket, and while Elphaba was still not a very jewelry-oriented girl, she loved the gift.

Currently, the green girl was in her room, studying the star chart while playing with her locket.

"Tonight, the Virgo constellation should be visible, along with the Serpens Caput constellation," she said to herself, marking it down.

"Fabala?" Nessarose called as she knocked on the door.

"Come in, Nessa," Elphaba called.

The brunette entered the room and smiled. "Do you want a snack?"

Elphaba turned and saw her sister holding a plate of strawberry tarts. "Sure," she smiled.

Nessarose climbed onto her sister's bed and the girls began to devour the treats. They knew they probably wouldn't be very hungry at dinner, but it was worth it for strawberry tarts.

"Why did the kitchen staff give you all these tarts?" Elphaba asked. "I mean… were they for me?"

"Well… 'gave' isn't really the word I would use," Nessarose said with a sly smirk.

Elphaba's eyes widened. "Nessa, you didn't…"

"Well, I knew they were for you, because today's your birthday and you love strawberries, so who else could they have been for?"

"Nessarose…"

"And it's their fault for just leaving them out for anyone to take."

Elphaba rolled her eyes as she finished the tart she was eating.

"Plus, no one has to know I was the one who took them."

"In that case, we'd better eat all of our dinner tonight."

"We're having grilled chicken and rice tonight."

Elphaba smiled and nodded. "Okay."

That evening, Elphaba was able to eat half of her dinner, while Nessa couldn't even make it through her rice. The girls were forced to confess what happened and while slightly amused, the adults weren't too happy.

"I thought you girls would have outgrown sneaking treats from the kitchen," Frexspar said as he shook his head, taking a sip from his goblet.

"Well, seeing as you girls had your treats before dinner, you won't want cake now," Melena said, signaling for the staff to bring the cake back into the kitchen.

"No, we do!" Nessarose quipped, taking a bite of chicken.

"I ate my dinner," Elphaba said, looking at the door to the kitchen where the cake was.

"You just spread your rice around your plate, Fabala," Melena pointed out.

Elphaba gave her mother a sheepish smile. The lady's maid sighed, knowing that she shouldn't deny her daughter her birthday cake.

"Very well," she said, calling for the cake again.

Nessarose smiled as she eyed the chocolate cake. She was already starting to get a bit full, and knew she would probably regret eating the cake, but she didn't care. Her love of chocolate cake knew no limits.

As the family shared the birthday cake, Nessarose decided that it was a perfect time to talk about Elphaba's knight training. She wanted to know everything that her sister was doing in her lessons and all of the new skills she had acquired.

"Can you have a swordfight while horseback riding?" the younger Thropp asked excitedly, causing Frexspar to chuckle softly.

"I don't think that's possible, Nessie," the green girl smiled.

"Then how fast can you string a bow?"

"My record is a minute."

"Is that good?"

"I'm supposed to get it down to forty-five seconds."

"You'll get there, Fabala," Frexspar said with a soft smile.

"Thank you, Father," Elphaba smiled back, then looked at her mother.

Melena had been quiet the entire time and Elphaba knew why. The elder Thropp rarely looked up from her plate during the entire discussion.

"Mother –"

"I believe that is enough knight talk for this evening," Melena said tightly.

"Mother, aren't you proud of Fabala?" the younger Thropp asked. "She's been working very hard."

Melena hummed distractedly, which didn't really answer the question.

"Elphaba, tell me more about your tracking lessons," Nessa said, turning her attention back to her sister. "Is it true that you get to go out into the forest and track wolves? Is it like the time you found Prince Fiyero in the woods and fought the wolf and –"

"Nessarose, that's enough!" Melena said in a tone she never took with her youngest daughter before.

Nessarose looked surprised as she glanced at her mother. "Mother –"

"There will be no more knight talk at dinner. Ever. Dinnertime is for normal, family discussions. Knight training and the like have no place at the dinner table."

"But, Mother –" Elphaba tried.

"I said no, Elphaba!" Melena hissed, glaring at the green girl.

Elphaba felt her eyes fill with tears and she abruptly stood from the table without excusing herself.

"Fabala!" Nessarose called after her retreating sister, but Elphaba didn't come back, or even turn around.

* * *

"Are you alright?"

"Of course. Why do you ask?"

"You're pulling up grass."

Elphaba looked down and realized that she had pulled up so much grass that she had created a large patch of bare dirt next to the thick blanket they were sitting on. Fiyero had taken her on a walk and surprised her with a night of stargazing in the Thousand Year Grasslands.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said as she brushed the grass from her hands and skirt.

"Did you not have a good birthday today?"

"I did. It was very nice," Elphaba said, then sighed. "It's just… Mother…"

"Did you have another argument with her?"

"Nessa was asking me questions about my training over dinner and she got upset. She said that my training isn't an appropriate dinner time topic and to never bring it up again."

"She still doesn't approve?"

"She never has and she never will," Elphaba said as she turned away slightly. "Sometimes, I think she would have preferred it if I went to the convent."

"Of course she doesn't, Fae. If you did, you would have been cloistered there for the rest of your life and would never see us again. I would never see _you_ again."

The prince looked at her thoughtfully. "Have you tried talking to her about it?"

"I can't, Yero. Every time I bring up something that has to do with my training, she either tries to change the subject or ignores me. She doesn't want to talk about it… with anyone."

Fiyero smiled at Elphaba using his nickname. It was a small gesture she probably didn't even notice, but he took it as a sign that she was beginning to trust him. "Maybe you should try again. You're a knight now, whether she agrees or not, and it's now a part of who you are. She has to accept it."

"Not if she doesn't want to."

Fiyero could already see how this conversation was starting to go in circles, so he wisely decided to change the subject. They began talking about the stars and constellations again, and Elphaba found herself feeling more relaxed. Soon, the two teenagers were snuggling together on the thick blanket; Elphaba's head resting on Fiyero's chest and Fiyero's arm wrapped around her waist. Fiyero turned and placed a gentle kiss on Elphaba's forehead. The green girl smiled softly and scooted up to give the prince a proper kiss. Before either of them knew it, their kisses had become longer more intense. Fiyero felt his body temperature rising and he subconsciously moved his hand down Elphaba's back.

Elphaba felt his movements and stiffened. "Fiyero," she whispered. "Fiyero, stop."

The prince immediately froze. "What is it? Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just…"

"What?"

"I mean… Fiyero, we can't be together like this."

Fiyero blinked. "Why not?"

"I'm… worried."

"Worried about what?"

"The… aftermath."

"Aftermath? Why? You can't get pregnant if you can't even –"

Elphaba fixed the prince with a hard glare and he immediately realized his mistake.

"Elphaba, I didn't mean –"

"No, you didn't," the green girl said coldly as she turned away. "No one ever does."

"Fae –"

"Is that the only reason you wanted me?" Elphaba asked softly, still not looking at him. "So you can have sex with me and not worry about having an illegitimate heir?" She froze before whispering, "Was that your plan all along?"

"What? Fae, you're being ridiculous! I would never do that to you?"

"Am I? Am I really being ridiculous? You can't admit that the thought never crossed your mind!"

"Why is it that you always take what I say the wrong way?"

"Why is it that you always say the wrong things?"

Fiyero took a deep breath. "Elphaba, I'm sorry. I'm really, _really_ sorry. I didn't mean what I said. If you don't want to –"

"What makes you think that I didn't want to?" Elphaba asked softly, no longer sounding mad.

"Um… your reaction," the prince said softly.

Elphaba was silent for a moment. "Honestly… I don't know what would happen if I had sex," she whispered. "I mean… it wouldn't result in an unwanted pregnancy."

"Can you –"

"I can still want sex, Fiyero!" Elphaba snapped.

"That… wasn't what I was going to ask," Fiyero said softly.

Elphaba finally turned around and gave him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. What were you going to say?"

"I… nothing," Fiyero said, trying to think of ways to change the subject yet again.

"Yero?"

"Yes?"

"Could we… um… start kissing again?" Elphaba asked as she nervously wrung her hands.

The prince smiled and gently pulled the green girl into a kiss. After a while, the couple simply laid on their backs, their fingers intertwined as they watched the night sky. Elphaba's eyes slowly started to drift closed, but Fiyero continued to watch the sky. As soon as Elphaba fell asleep, a shooting star flew by above their heads and Fiyero took that as a good sign.


	19. Chapter 18

**satilliteheart: We'll find out why Melena feels the way she does in this chapter.**

* * *

Melena stood outside her daughter's door. She wanted to talk to her, but couldn't bring herself to knock. She knew they weren't on very good terms at the moment, but wanted to clear the air. She hated being upset with her children, especially Elphaba. They had drifted apart the last few years, and the elder Thropp just hoped that they would be able to salvage their relationship.

She knocked on the door and slowly pushed it open. "Hi, Fabala."

The green girl looked up from her book, clearly surprised to see her mother. "Hi."

"What are you reading?"

"Nothing," Elphaba whispered as she closed the book and placed it aside with the cover facing down so her mother wouldn't see it.

Melena could see that her daughter clearly wasn't in the mood to talk to her and was about to leave, but then she realized that if she left, she would be giving up, and she refused to give up on her daughter. "Do you want to talk?"

"What about?"

"Whatever you want to talk about."

Elphaba didn't know what her mother was doing. Did she really want to talk to her? Was she trying to get some information from her? What was her motive?

"We haven't had a mother-daughter conversation in a while," Melena said, approaching her daughter.

"You… want to have a conversation?" Elphaba asked slowly.

"I do."

Elphaba thought for a moment before going over to sit on her bed. "Okay."

The lady's maid smiled softly as she went to sit next to her daughter. "Did you have a nice birthday?"

"Yes. I did."

When Melena realized that her daughter wasn't going to elaborate, she tried asking more questions. But Elphaba was still very limited with her responses. Finally, Melena asked the question she knew her daughter wasn't expecting her to ask.

"How is your training coming along?"

The green girl blinked in surprise. She looked at her mother, as if wondering if she had really just asked that.

"I… I want to know," Melena said, clearly struggling with her words.

"It's fine," Elphaba said as she closed herself off again.

"Elphaba," the older woman began. "I know I haven't been the most… supportive of your decision to become a knight. I know I could have at least hidden my feelings better, but… but you must try to see this from my point of view."

Elphaba glanced at her mother.

"It's not every day your eldest daughter announces that she wants to be a knight."

"It was either that or the convent."

"I know. Honestly, I didn't want you to join the convent, either. But… going there wouldn't have been a punishment."

"Being sent to a convent is the most classic form of punishment."

"But it wouldn't have been for you."

"I would never see you or Father or Nessa again. I would have had to cut my hair and –"

"You did that anyway."

"For a completely different reason."

Melena smiled as she ran her fingers through her daughter's hair. "I never told you that I like your hairstyle, did I?"

"No… but I know you don't."

"Elphaba –"

"You don't have to pretend that you're okay with all of this just for the sake of having a conversation," Elphaba said as she got up and went to her window.

"I'm not trying to pretend that I'm okay with it, Elphaba," Melena said, though she didn't stand. "I just want to talk about it. I'm just… I'm just trying to understand why."

"Why what?"

"Why you wanted to become a knight."

"I was already caught learning how to fence with Hann when I was thirteen."

"Fabala, I know that can't be the only reason."

"The reason was that I didn't want to be sent to the convent."

"There has to be more to it than that."

"Why didn't you just send me to the convent like you wanted to from the beginning?"

Melena froze, gaping at her daughter. "What?"

"You've been wanting to send me to the convent for years, so why didn't you when you had the opportunity?"

Her mother was rendered speechless. She honestly had no idea of what to say, or what she could say. "What are you talking about?"

"Years ago, I heard you and Father talking about sending me to the convent. Since then, I've been trying so hard to make you happy… to make you proud of me, but nothing ever worked. Then after we found out why I couldn't have children and the Caradocs broke off the marriage, I could feel your despise for me growing."

Melena was silent as she watched her daughter. She had no idea she felt that way. She faintly remembered having conversations with Frex about Elphaba and the convent, but she couldn't remember exactly what was said. And that made her feel even guiltier. "Oh, Fabala," she whispered as her daughter's eyes filled with tears. "I could never despise you. You're my daughter. While this certainly isn't the life I envisioned for you, I certainly could never despise you." She approached her child and tried to hug her, but Elphaba pulled away.

"You and Father said that since the orphanage would no longer take me, you could send me to the nunnery. After that, I tried so hard to make you happy so you wouldn't send me away. You thought I was a bad child."

"I never thought that you were a bad child, Fabala," Melena said, pieces of the puzzle slowly coming together in her mind. "Different and a bit odd, yes, but never bad."

Elphaba refused to look at her mother.

"The truth is…" the older woman began slowly. "I was worried about you. I still am. You are so much like my brother."

"You… you had a brother?" the green girl asked softly. "I didn't know that."

"I did. His name was Fictor. He was the best younger brother ever," Melena said, sitting down on Elphaba's bed. "He was smart, kind, a bit whiny, but very courageous."

"What happened to him?" Elphaba asked as she sat next to her mother.

"He was a knight. He was assigned to protect the queen, who was then still a princess, when she went to a ceremony. Someone tried to attack her and he defended her, as was his duty. He…" Melena trailed off, but Elphaba figured out what had happened.

"That's why you didn't want me to become a knight," the green girl finished softly, suddenly understanding.

"I didn't want you to suffer the same fate he did. But I didn't want it to come across that I wasn't proud of you. I am proud of you, Fabala. You've grown into a strong, independent young woman and I couldn't be happier. I was just so worried, but since the king and queen, as well as your father, supported you, I didn't want to voice my opposing opinion."

"I'm sorry, Mother."

The older Thropp looked at her daughter and gave her a small smile. "Don't be. It's not your fault." She gently wrapped an arm around her daughter, praying she wouldn't pull away. Much to her relief and surprise, Elphaba snuggled closer to her.

"I love you, Fabala," Melena whispered, kissing her daughter's forehead.

"I love you, too, Mother," Elphaba replied, resting her head against her mother's shoulder.

"I am very proud of you and all you've accomplished. I'm sorry I made you feel like I wasn't proud of you or despised you. I could never send you away, especially knowing that I would never see you again. I'm sorry about everything."

"I'm sorry, too. But I'll be careful. I promise."

"I know you will. But I will continue to worry about you. Those swords are very sharp, after all."

"Mother," Elphaba sighed, but laughed, and Melena did as well.

"Now," the older Thropp said, gently pulling away to look at her daughter. "Tell me all about the battle strategies you've been learning about."

Elphaba looked unsure for a moment, but the encouraging look from her mother helped her to open up and have a wonderful conversation with her mother for the first time in a while.

* * *

Elphaba was resting under a tree in the courtyard. She and Hann had just finished practicing staves. Hann had landed many blows against her and ended the practice. She was clearly off her game and Hann wanted to find out why.

"If Sir Davion saw you in the courtyard today, he would have made you run laps," Hann pointed out as they sat together.

"I've just… had a lot on my mind," Elphaba said softly.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"It's just… I had a conversation with my mother about being a knight."

"It didn't go well?"

"On the contrary, it went surprisingly well. She… she explained how she felt and we really listened to each other. I fully understand why she didn't want me to become a knight."

"So… she approves?"

"I think she does. I mean, she's still worried about me, but she understands me more now."

"That's good," Hann said, yawning softly and closing his eyes.

"And then there's Prince Fiyero."

"What about him?"

"That's just it. I don't know. I mean… I like him. I like him a lot, but… I'm so confused."

"Do you love him?"

Elphaba paused. Did she love the prince? "I mean… we've kissed… more than once. And he gave me a nickname… of sorts. And we have very nice conversations… even though he has a tendency to put his foot in his mouth."

Hann chuckled softly. "You know, Elphaba, underneath all of this knight training and strenuous work, you're still a young woman. You're allowed to fall in love and be swept off your feet."

"You're allowed to be swept off your feet, too," Elphaba said with a pointed smirk.

"I'd love to meet a girl who could sweep me off my feet. Extra points if she does it literally."

Elphaba rolled her eyes with a laugh.

"But seriously," Hann continued. "There's nothing in the knight handbook that says we can't fall in love."

Elphaba was silent for a moment. "Okay, so let's suppose I do love him. I still don't know if he loves me, and even if I did, we couldn't exactly be together."

"There's also no rule that says princes can't marry knights. I mean… you're the first girl knight, so…"

"Hann, you have to remember the reason I became a knight in the first place."

"Wasn't it because you finally were able to convince the king and queen?"

The green girl realized that she never told Hann the real reason and took a deep breath.

"Wow," the older knight said when she finished telling him the story. "I'm really sorry, Elphaba."

"Don't be," she said, waving it off. "It happened a while ago. And it was either this or the nunnery. But it does explain why Prince Fiyero and I couldn't be together even if we wanted to. He needs to produce an heir and I need to produce better staves skills."

"Speaking of Prince Fiyero…" Hann smiled, gesturing with his head to the left.

Elphaba followed his motion and saw the prince approaching them. She immediately stood and Hann followed suit.

"Your Highness," Elphaba bowed.

"Dame Elphaba, Squire Hann," Fiyero nodded and Hann also bowed. "May I speak to you for a moment?" he asked, looking at Elphaba.

"Of course," Elphaba nodded and Hann excused himself.

"Elphaba," Fiyero said once Hann was out of earshot.

"Fiyero," the green girl responded, realizing what dropping the honorific meant.

"Would you like to join me for a walk in the gardens?"

Elphaba wondered why Fiyero was asking her to join him on a walk… and why he looked nervous doing so. "Okay."

As the two walked, Elphaba noticed Fiyero fiddling with something in his pocket. When she questioned him about it, he simply said that she would find out in a moment, which didn't answer her question or curb her curiosity.

"You called me by my official title," Elphaba whispered.

The prince glanced at her. "Yes. I did."

"It's technically not my official title yet. Not until I pass my final test."

"But everyone knows you'll pass, so I just decided to get an early start."

Elphaba blushed, but tried to cover it up.

"Elphaba?"

"Yes?"

"I… I have to tell you something."

"Yes?"

"It's serious."

Elphaba's face dropped. "Oh."

"It's not bad," Fiyero quickly amended, realizing what he had done.

Elphaba looked up at him, still very wary.

He took a deep breath. "Fae, we've known each other our entire lives. And even though we weren't on the best terms in the beginning, we still became friends. We began to trust each other and built a relationship. I've immensely enjoyed every moment we spent playing chess or star gazing together."

"I… really enjoyed it, too, Yero," Elphaba said softly, still unsure where the prince was going with this.

"I love being with you. I love that I can have an actual conversation with you. I love… you."

Elphaba didn't even realize that she had tears in her eyes until she felt them sliding down her cheek. Why was the prince making her cry like this? What was he trying to say? "I… love you, too, Yero," she admitted softly. Immediately, she felt a weight being lifted from her chest when she realized what she had just said was true. She did love the prince.

"I know I haven't actually told you that I love you enough, but… I believe that actions speak louder than words," he said as he slowly got down on one knee.

Elphaba's eyes widened as she gasped softly. Fiyero pulled out a small box from his pocket and opened it, revealing a ring with a beautiful emerald in the center.

"Elphaba… Fae… will you marry me?"

Elphaba felt her heart jump into her throat. Instantly, the weight returned to her chest, pressing down harder than it had been before. She tried to speak, but no words came out. What was going on?

"Fae?"

Elphaba blinked and looked from the ring to the prince. Tears continued to slide down her cheek, but she couldn't find the strength to raise her hand to wipe them away. She saw how hopeful and nervous Fiyero looked and opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn't.

Instead, she ran away as fast as she could.

* * *

 ***Exhales slowly* Yeah… um… that happened. *Hides***

 ***Peeks head out to make one more announcement* The next chapter will be the final one. And… y'all may want to have some tissues at hand. Or… a whole box. Just sayin'.**


	20. Chapter 19

**Here we are, everyone! The final chapter! Everyone have their tissues ready? Also, shoutout to Fangirl17 for being the 100th reviewer! *Confetti cannon goes off***

 **Satilliteheart: They were never an official couple, no.**

 **Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Because you have the gift of knowing me so well.**

 **PocketSevens: LOL! Your reviews always make me laugh! Please keep them coming! And also, please tell Glinda that I'm sorry!**

* * *

Nessarose smiled as she buried her face in her bouquet of flowers. She had received them from a secret admirer and was very eager to find out who he was. She had her suspicions that it was one of the new pages that had arrived earlier that month. He was shy, but still very cute. Nessarose found him catching her eye more than once and was waiting for an opportunity to talk to him.

"Miss Nessarose!"

The younger Thropp turned around. "Your Highness," she curtsied.

The prince had practically pleaded with her to just call him 'Fiyero', but Nessa had steadfastly refused, even when they were in private. She never told Fiyero why, but he assumed that she was just trying to remain proper. "Have you seen Elphaba?"

"Not since this morning. I'm sorry."

Fiyero sighed.

"If I may ask, why are you looking for her?"

"I asked her a question… and I think she got scared and ran away."

"What did you ask her?"

"I… I asked her to marry me."

Nessarose blinked, clearly not knowing what to say, or what she _could_ say. "She… ran away?" was the best she could come up with.

"It was kind of sudden," Fiyero sighed, running his hand through his hair. "I sort of sprang it upon her."

"You want to marry Elphaba?"

The prince sighed. "I do. I just don't think she wants to marry me."

"She does," Nessa admitted softly.

"What?"

"She does. She loves you, Your Highness."

"Then why did she run away?"

"I… don't know."

Both of them were silent for a while.

"Do you think it has anything to do with her… predicament?"

Nessarose nodded slightly. "Probably. How do you suppose to get around that?"

"I don't know."

The younger girl resisted the urge to raise her eyebrow. "If I may offer some advice?"

"Please."

"Talk to her again. That's all you can do at the moment. There's probably more than one reason she ran away."

The prince smiled and thanked the younger girl before going to find Elphaba. He looked all over the first floor of the castle before a maid informed him that she saw her hurry into the library. He thanked her and hurried into the library. After walking around through the shelves, he found the green girl sitting at a table in the corner, setting up a chessboard.

"May I join you?" he asked, sitting down across from her with a soft smile.

Elphaba looked up at him and wordlessly nodded slightly.

"I'm sorry," Fiyero said softly as he moved a pawn forward two spaces.

"Why?" Elphaba asked, a bit of accusation laced within her voice.

"For scaring you."

"You didn't scare me."

"Then why did you run away?"

"I was just… confused."

"Why?"

"Why wouldn't I be confused?"

"You can't answer the question with another question, Elphaba."

The green girl sighed as she moved her knight. "Why did you ask me to marry you?"

"Because I love you, Fae."

"But _why_ did you ask me to _marry_ you?"

" _Because_ I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "You say that like I would leave for something else. I'll always be in your service, _Prince_ Fiyero."

The prince sighed. "So you're saying that you would rather be a knight than my wife?"

"I'm _saying_ that I fought against being a 'proper lady' my entire life. It wouldn't make sense for me to just give that up."

"You like being a knight?"

"Of course."

"Why?"

"Because I finally feel like I belong. Like I have a purpose. I enjoy the adventure and the exercise. I love feeling… free."

"You didn't just do it so you could stay in the castle?"

"Of course that wasn't the _only_ reason," Elphaba said, putting Fiyero's king in check. "There's also the fact that I can't have children, which means that if you were to marry me, you wouldn't have an heir."

Fiyero moved his rook to protect his king. "So that's why you ran away?"

"Partly."

" _Mostly_."

Elphaba glanced at him. "What would your parents say?"

"They would be happy that I've found a wonderful, intelligent girl to marry before they had to do it for me."

"You know what I meant, Fiyero. What would they say about the heir?"

"They would try to find a way around it. There's always my mother's younger brother. There's Galinda. They could always inherit the throne. My mother would just be happy that I'm happy."

Elphaba was silent.

"Would marrying me make you happy, Fae?"

Elphaba had to think. Would marrying the prince make her happy? She knew that she loves him, but is that enough. Was just loving him enough to accept his proposal? "Yes," she whispered, moving her bishop diagonal four spaces. "It would."

"So, you'll marry me?"

"There's so much more to consider, Fiyero."

"We just discussed what to consider."

"I know, but…"

"But what?"

"Could you imagine the girl training to be a knight just suddenly turning around and becoming queen?"

The prince sighed and rolled his eyes. "Now you're just going in circles. Fae, you grew up here. You know what royal life is like."

"Just because I know what it's like doesn't mean I would like it."

Fiyero bit his lip. He didn't know what else to say to Elphaba. Biting his lip, he figured the only thing he could do was give her a bit of space. Maybe after thinking for a while, she would see that she wants to marry him.

"Don't you have anything else to say?" Elphaba asked, wondering why Fiyero wasn't pressing his case more.

"Yes," Fiyero said as he moved his queen next to Elphaba's king. "Checkmate."

Elphaba stared at the board in surprise as Fiyero got up and walked out of the library.

* * *

Later that evening, Elphaba couldn't focus on her tactics textbook. She couldn't stop replaying Fiyero's words over and over again in her head. Deep down, she knew he was right. But she had built a life for herself as a knight. Did she really want to give that up to marry Fiyero?

"Fabala?"

Elphaba looked up. "Hi, Nessa."

The brunette sat down next to her sister. "What are you reading?"

"My tactics book."

Nessa nodded, but didn't ask about the book any further. "I saw the prince today."

"He told you?"

"He told me that you ran away when he proposed to you."

Elphaba sighed.

"Why don't you want to marry him?"

"It's not that I don't want to, it's that I would have to change the life I made for myself."

Nessarose understood what her sister was saying. "All I can say is that you should follow your heart."

"You read that in a romance novel, didn't you?"

"Even if I did, you know it's true."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "I'll consider it."

The younger girl nodded as she stood. "It's your choice, Fabala."

Elphaba watched her sister leave. She really didn't know what she wanted at this point. Huffing, she went back to her book.

The next morning, she was still reading the same book, curled up in an armchair in a small corner in the library.

"Hey."

Elphaba looked up. "Hi, Yero."

"Are you ready to go?"

"Go where?"

"The library opening."

The green girl's eyes widened. "That's _today_?"

"Yes."

Elphaba threw her book down and hurried to her room, closely followed by the prince. "When are you leaving?"

"Whenever my royal escort is ready."

Elphaba made a noise as she struggled to get into her knight uniform. She tied her hair into a braid and threw it over her shoulder. Satisfied, she hurried out the room and walked with Fiyero down the stairs.

"Fae?"

"Yes?"

"About… marrying me..."

"Fiyero, can we discuss this when we get back?"

The prince frowned, but nodded. "Of course."

"You have your speech, Fiyero?" Amalie asked when she saw her son.

"I have it, Mother," Fiyero said, holding up a folded piece of paper.

"Good. Be safe, son," Raal said, giving his son a hug.

"You as well, Elphaba," the queen said, looking at the green girl.

"Of course, Your Majesties," Elphaba said as she bowed and walked out with the prince to the waiting carriage.

* * *

Melena sighed as she repaired one of the queen's gowns. She had no idea how the skirt ripped, but never questioned the monarch. She accidentally pricked her finger with the needle and bit back a gasp before reaching for a thimble. She heard a carriage approaching and figured it was the prince and her daughter returning from the library.

"Lady Melena?"

The lady's maid looked up. "Yes?"

The maid slowly approached the queen's attendant, worry filling her eyes as she nervously wrung her hands behind her back.

"What's wrong?"

"It's… it's your daughter, ma'am."

"Elphaba?"

"Yes, ma'am. She's… hurt."

"Hurt how? Did something happen at the library?"

The maid looked unsure of what to say. "Yes."

Melena didn't wait for the maid to elaborate as she hurried to her daughter's room, completely abandoning the dress. The king and queen were outside the room, looking extremely worried.

"Your Majesties," Melena curtsied, struggling to catch her breath. "What…"

"Someone tried to hurt Fiyero at the library opening," the queen began, trying to keep her voice from trembling. "Elphaba jumped in front of him and saved him… but…"

"Go inside," the king said, stepping out of the way to allow Melena into her daughter's room.

Melena curtsied again and slowly pushed the door open. She gasped at the sight in front of her, rooted in the doorway.

There, lying in her bed, was her eldest child, covered in blood. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was extremely labored. Her hair had mostly come undone from its braid and her face was contorted in pain. Fiyero was sitting on the bed next to her, his shirt also covered in blood. Nessarose stood by the window, watching her sister in horror. She was huddled protectively in her father's arms. It was clear that both of them had been crying. Frex watched his daughter, unable to take his eyes off of her, probably mostly due to the amount of blood covering her sheets. As soon as Nessarose saw her mother, she gently squirmed out of her father's arms and ran to her.

"Mama!" she cried, burying her face in her mother's shoulder.

"It's alright, Nessa," Melena said, barely registering that Nessarose had called her 'Mama', something she hadn't done in a while as she wrapped her arms around her.

The prince looked up and straightened, belatedly realizing that he was showing off his bloodstained shirt.

Melena looked down at the green girl before looking up at the prince, quickly noticing the blood on his shirt. "Are you alright, Your Highness?"

"Yes, I am," Fiyero said, unable to control his wavering voice as well as his mother had. "This isn't my… I mean… I didn't… Elphaba…"

"What happened?"

"I don't know. It all happened so fast. One clock-tick. I'm delivering a speech, and the next, Elphaba pushed me out of the way and there was a loud bang and she was on the ground, bleeding."

Melena gently detached herself from Nessarose as she went over to Elphaba. Or well… she tried to, but the younger girl was adamant about not letting go of her mother.

"Fabala?" Melena whispered, gently stroking her daughter's cheek.

Elphaba groaned as she slowly forced her eyes open. "M… Ma… ma…?"

"Yes, Fabala. I'm right here," Melena said softly.

"… Hurts…"

"I know, sweetheart. But you'll be fine." She gently kissed her cheek. This scene was much too familiar to her, but she just hoped it wouldn't have the same outcome.

"We sent for the doctor as soon as we arrived," Fiyero said, really wishing he could change his shirt, but knowing better than to ask at a time like this. "Elphaba… she… saved my life."

Elphaba moaned and her fingers twitched. "F… Fi… Yero…?"

The prince looked at Melena, who nodded slightly. "Yes, Fae?" he asked, gently sitting down on the bed and taking her hand.

"… Sh… shirt…"

"It's fine. Don't worry about it. Just try to stay awake until the doctor gets here."

"T… tired…"

"I know, Fae. But you have to stay awake."

Elphaba mumbled something and grimaced.

"Where does it hurt?"

"Side… cold…"

"You're cold?"

"Mmmm."

At that moment, the doctor arrived. As soon as he saw Elphaba, his face grew grim.

"This wound is strange," he said. "It was caused by some sort of advanced technology I don't know how to treat."

"Isn't there anything you can do?" Frex asked desperately. " _Something_."

"I'm sorry, Lord Frexspar," the doctor said. "I can do what I can to stop the bleeding, but if the infection has already set in, which I think it has, there's nothing much left to do."

Nessarose sat next to her sister, clutching her hand. She gently wiped her hair away from her sweaty forehead and lightly kissed her cheek. She felt Elphaba give her hand a light squeeze and she bit her lip to avoid crying out.

"I love you, Fabala," she whispered, and she got another squeeze.

Fiyero was still sitting on the green girl's other side, simply watching as her chest slowly rose and fell. "I love you, too, Fae."

Elphaba slowly opened her eyes and the corners of her lips twitched. "Yero?"

"Yes?"

"… Kiss me…?"

The prince smiled slightly as he slowly leaned down and gently pressed his lips against Elphaba's. "I'll always love you, Fae," he whispered when he pulled away, his breath mixing with hers.

"Yero my hero," the green girl whispered with a slight smile.

"No, you're _my_ hero, Fae."

Elphaba blinked at him, then her face then contorted in pain and she gasped softly as she closed her eyes for the last time.

Later that night, surrounded by her family and the ones she held dear, Dame Elphaba Melena Thropp, knight of King Raal's guard, peacefully breathed her last breath.

* * *

 **Okay, before you all kill me, let me just say that I have been toying with how to end this story, and as much as I wanted the Fiyeraba to get married, it wouldn't have fit the 'Knight Elphaba' storyline.**

 **Also, I took a creative liberty with Elphaba's dead. The first firearm use was recorded in 1364, a good 250 years after this story is set. But I chose to get creative.**

 **My next story,** ** _'Outlive A Lie'_** **, will be posted within the next few days. I hope you all stick around to read it.**

 **So, now that I got that out, feel free to leave your murderous reviews below.**


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